Dragon Tales, Volume 1: Freedom of choice
by Morbid1Curiosity
Summary: It's the knight's duty to save the princess, but how often does one use a dragon to achieve that, instead of saving her from the dragon?
1. The Dragon

"Ack!" Something let out a yelp as it tumbled into the room waking Weiss as she moved up into a sitting position, letting out a surprised gasp at the sudden intrusion in her bedchamber.

"Ow… Still, no glass, glad the balcony was open." The intruder rubbed its head, slowly standing up and looking around, only to see a pair of big blue eyes, wide open in shock. "Oh… Oh! No! Please don't call for anyone! I'm not here to hurt you or anything. Actually, I'm not even sure who you are, me being here? It's totally an accident, please, let me explain."

Weiss looked at her surprise guest, who turned out to be a redhead girl around her age, raised her arms in a calming manner, seemingly as surprised and confused as she herself was right now. The girl that just moments ago was soundly sleeping in her bed took a deep breath, first, she had to understand the situation she got herself into. A noblewoman is to act calmly in any situation. Hot-headed attitude is reserved for man. "Are you here to kidnap me? Assassinate me?" She asked calmly if that was the other girl's goal… Well, before her guards arrive she would be already dead.

"No, no no no. I'm not here to do anything bad. Like I said I… Well… It's complicated." The girl sat down on the spot she just stood and let out a tired sigh. Trick or not, the odd behavior of the girl made Weiss… Believe her, if only for now. At least believe the part about this not being anything as trivial as killing her, kidnapping her or stealing from her. While she knew that she should keep her distance, her curiosity got better of her and she slowly got up from her bed and approached the girl.

"Introduce yourself." Not sure how much she could push her luck, she wanted to test that, as she regained control of her voice and added a bit of a demanding note to it.

"Right! I'm…" The girl paused. "I guess the closest name I could offer you that you could pronounce is Ruby Rose. So just Ruby is fine." She didn't curtsy, didn't bow. She didn't even stand up. All the girl, this Ruby, did was to grin and stick out her hand towards her. The sudden gesture made Weiss take a step back, as she wasn't familiar with such ways of greetings. "Eh?" Ruby's brow just raised at that.

"Are you even aware where you are? Who I am? Of course not, you did mention that you're here by accident. Assuming I believe you, you're clueless of who you stand before." Weiss frowned and crossed her arms.

"Well… Kind of?" The redhead rubbed the back of her head with a sheepish smile.

"I am Weiss Schnee, the princess of Atlas and the first in line to inherit the throne." The Schnee announced proudly, and while she expected for the other girl to adjust her behavior or at least do something, all she got was… Well…

"Neat!" A simple comment. "I never meet a real princess."

"Assuming you meet a lot of fake princesses?" She let out a grunt, losing her patience with this girl, as she allowed for some of the said annoyance to slip past her cool demeanor. "Explain yourself fully before I call the guards, and I warn you penalty for intruding into my bedchamber is death."

"H-Hey calm down! Look I was flying around, going all whoosh, quick, since I am the quickest there is, and we had a little race and I might have got a tiiiiiny bit ahead of myself. But it's not my fault! It just feels so amazing to go through the clouds and dive down into the forest, to test your luck as you have to avoid each tree, look out for any additional obstacles, you know the moving kind like animals or something like that! So I did all that, got a bit too focused on it actually, and I might have got a bit too close to your kingdom and… Well. Here I am, after my improvised landing." The girl took a deep breath as she ended her explanation. As for Weiss? She was just standing there slack-jawed. Not sure what was more impressing, the ridiculous story she just heard or the fact that this weird girl said it all without taking a break to take a breather.

"What?!" She managed to ask, still looking at her as if Ruby just grew another head.

"Uh, to which part exactly?" The redhead asked, not sure if her story was confusing or was something else up.

"You were flying? And, excuse me, how did you manage to do that?" Weiss was playing along, she wanted to hear the entire story. Although she already made up her mind about it being stupid. She just didn't expect for this Ruby girl to think that her, someone of royal blood, could be fooled by something like that.

"Well duh, every dragon can fly." Ruby expected some sort of reaction. I mean how do you not have one after meeting a dragon, right? It's only natural. But… Well.

Laughter. Weiss was laughing. It wasn't a chuckle nor was it a giggle. She was laughing. Ruby wanted to say something, but whenever she opened her mouth and faced the Schnee princess, hearing her laughter made her pause and feel another wave of heat enter her face. It took a while and it made Ruby wonder if none of the guards would come in, or was this normal for the princess of this country to burst out in uncontrollable fits of laughter.

Soon the girl was out of breath and had to sit down on the floor to which Ruby just rolled her eyes. "Are you done?"

"I… I apologize." Weiss wiped off some tears that managed to collect in the corner of her eyes, trying desperately to regain her ability to breathe. "It's not really that funny, your implication of being a dragon." She shook her head. "It was just a tiring day and with you suddenly… Appearing in here and the way you acted and everything." She finally looked up giving one final sigh. "For some reason, I felt like I just had to laugh at it all."

The alleged dragon girl just rubbed her neck at that. Was this better than being laughed at for saying who she was or worse? Well at least she made the other girl smile, that's never a bad thing, right? Making others smile. "H-Hey!" And a second after that thought, she understood fully what Weiss just said. "The implication is true, alright? I'm a dragon and you should have a little bit more respect… Or something."

"And what if I ask for proof?" Weiss's raised her brow, still wearing a playful smile.

"Pfsh, I'll just show… You..." Ruby's voice was full of vigor until she noticed that while spacious, this room would still be… Well, not too small just… It would be difficult to change it. "I know! My eyes." Ruby quickly cut the distance between herself and the other girl, kneeling in front of her and grabbing her shoulder.

This, of course, made Weiss feel uncomfortable, as she wasn't used to being touched in such a casual way by complete strangers. Although that thought was quickly replaced by… Something else. The reason being the other girls face that got even closer to her own, and the silver eyes that looked deeply into her own. She felt her own cheeks grow warm, feeling as if this Ruby girl was staring into her soul. Soon she saw it, for a moment the silver eyes morphed into eyes that she could only describe as cat eyes. Not exactly, but very familiar. Slitted eyes. At such revelation, she moved away from the redhead. "T-That means nothing on its own, a trick of the eye!" She frowned, she hated being tricked.

"Oh yeah?" Ruby huffed as she stood up and began to move towards the balcony. "Then come here and tell me if anyone could climb this impossible tower."

"I can't." Weiss answered simply.

"Ha! So you admit that you believe me?" A grin started to blossom on Ruby's face.

"No, I simply would wish to avoid for anyone to see me in my nightgown. Even if it's very high, the possibility might still be there." The white-haired girl hugged herself at that.

"Huh? Oh, right, you're wearing… A nightgown..." The redhead frowned at that, as the clockwork inside her brain started to slowly turn. Her eyes grew at that and her cheeks grew red, as she immediately turned around. "I'm sorry! I just… Because of everything. I didn't mean to stare! I didn't stare, anything I saw was by accident I swear."

Weiss hid her face in her own hands, a big smile creeping on her face. She wanted to laugh, but this time she could easily control this desire. While it was a quite rare feeling for her to have, she didn't want to upset the other girl, since she was the source of this… Amusement. "You're acting like such a dolt."

"H-Hey! I'm trying to be respectful here and this is the treatment I get?" Ruby wanted to turn around as she felt offended, but one glance at the girl and her attire made her just blush and turn to her previous position.

"I thought dragons have a thick skin… Hide, whatever it is you have." Weiss moved her knees up as she hugged them, observing the back of Ruby with curiosity.

"Scales… I mean we have skin under the scales too, but I think when you think of us, you first think scales." Ruby answered as if the other girl truly sought the answer.

"So what now?" The Schnee princess tilted her head.

"Erh… Well, I wouldn't mind leaving this place without anyone noticing. Anyone but you that is." The redhead rubbed the back of her head, visibly stopping herself from turning around as she wasn't used to having her back to the people she talked to.

"Very well, I'll help you." Weiss slowly stood up and stretched, ignoring the cold she felt from being as she was out in the open for such an extended period of time, she moved towards a small bookshelf inside the room.

"Y-You will?" Once more, Ruby had to stop herself from fully turning around, doing as much as even covering her eyes as soon as she caught herself mid-spin. "C-Can I turn around?"

With a sigh, Weiss rolled her eyes. "Yes, permission granted. You already saw me so what's with this weird act?" The Schnee briefly turned to glance at the self-proclaimed dragon girl.

Said girl finally turned around, although not without her cheeks turning red as soon as her silver eyes laid on the princess. "It's because you're… I mean… It's about your…" She bit her lower lips, only for her eyes to shine for a split second as an idea popped into her head. "I-It's because you're a princess and I want to respect that. Your body… Erh, you know what I mean." Once more, Ruby wasn't sure what to say as she rubbed her neck, feeling embarrassed at her own antics.

"Right, now come here and help me with this shelf." Weiss decided to not dwell into the other girl's weird behavior after all her unexpected guest thought she was a dragon so being crazy was not out of question. Instead, she focused on the task at hand, trying to help this weird girl escape the castle before she's caught and executed… Or worse."

"Huh?" Ruby wasn't sure what Weiss meant, till she understood that the princess attempted to push the shelf and to her surprise, she succeeded, moving it a few inches, before stopping. The redhead noticing that she would move her lips, saying something to herself and after some seconds passed she would push it once more. "Is it heavy?" Once she got next to both the shelf and Weiss, she asked, glancing between the two.

"Yes and no, I push it a little, count to ten and try again, it's to avoid anyone noticing, or at least minimizing those that potentially might hear it." The Schnee explained and pushed once more, this time with the dragon girl's help.

Ruby wanted to ask why were they even doing this, but after the shove that she assisted in, she noticed the hole that had to be behind the furniture. "Oh! Clever."

"Mmm… I used it for… Things." Weiss explained between the shoves, which could have made the ten-second rule a bit stretched. "On the other side of this, you'll find a set of spiral stairs. Going down you'll see three similar holes. The first leads to the kitchen, the second to the armory and the last one should make you fall into the sewers which will lead you out into the castle moat."

"Ew… I guess I have no other choice." Ruby let out a soft sigh.

"Unless you just turn into a dragon you claim to be and fly away, no." Weiss shook her head.

"I'd rather not, the entire point is to remain unnoticed, especially in my true form." The redhead explained and soon the shelf was pushed enough so that Ruby could get onto the other side through it.

"Neat, thanks! I'm in your debt for saving me, and a dragon always pays off its debt." The dragon girl grinned as she began to crawl into the small passage.

"Yes, yes, just go and be careful of anyone catching you. If something happens, knock two times, count to five and knock another two times." She received no answer but assumed that it was due to the other girl not wanting to be heard by anyone. She waited a moment and after the other girl didn't come back, she decided to just push the shelf back at where it was the same method she explained earlier to the now gone girl. Once everything was in place, Weiss decided to go back to sleep. Even if her head was full of various thoughts and emotions, the unexpected physical exercise would be enough to make her fall asleep as soon as she laid down onto her giant bed.

oooOOOooo

Weiss was glancing at the book on her lap, not really sure what to think about all the things she managed to read today. She decided to comply with a lot, which while confused a lot of her servants, gave her plenty of time to read up on a certain topic. That topic? Dragons.

As if summoned, she heard the surprised yelp of the girl from yesterday, combined with the sound of her tumbling across the floor. With a sigh, she looked over her shoulder to see the same girl in a very similar position from yesterday, although her expression was more… How to describe it… Goofy looking? She was wearing the same thing as yesterday, a dark sleeveless tunic and what seemed to be a white shirt underneath. Her hands and part of her forearms were covered with black gloves. Below she wore dark pants, in the same color as her tunic and very… Thick, black leather boots.

"Huh, you're not in your nightgown." Was the first thing the girl, Ruby, commented as she slowly gathered herself off the floor.

"Is it disappointment I hear in your voice?" Weiss teased her.

"Eh?! N-No! An observation!" It was amusing to watch as the girl's cheeks turned bright red, her silver eyes grew two times and she raised her hands in a defensive manner. She couldn't help but giggle at her antics. "H-Hey, that's unfair." The redhead pouted, only to receive another giggle from the princess. Perhaps it was her goal all along, as Ruby then smiled, slowly approaching her.

"I told my maid to prepare a warm robe for me." Weiss explained, putting the book to the side. Earlier she considered waiting for the girl while facing the window but… But for some reason, she didn't want to spoil the mystery. She was afraid that if she saw the girl come into her room in some other way than she explained the other night, it would make this entire thing disappointing.

"Neat, you won't freeze your butt off." Ruby grinned, only to blink. "Wait, you knew I'd come?"

The Schnee simply shrugged. "For some reason, I had a suspicious feeling you'd visit this place again." It was more of a hope, not really a suspicious feeling, but she wouldn't admit to that, for several reasons. One of them being that she wasn't sure why exactly did she even feel that way.

"Darn, and here I thought I'd surprise you." The redhead rubbed her neck with a grin.

"Surprise or scare me again?" Weiss squinted her eyes at her visitor, and for the second time today, Ruby had to get on defense.

"H-Hey I didn't mean to scare you the other night, alright?" While defending herself she continued to walk towards her host, sitting beside her on the edge of the bed. "So what are you reading over there?" She asked after catching a glimpse of the book that Weiss had by her side.

The Schnee princess blinked as her head moved towards the item in question, her book. "Oh!" Remembering, she glanced at it only to look back at the girl. "I decided to educate myself on the topic of dragons." She nodded at that. "Since I am to play along with your claim of being a dragon, it seemed only fair that I had some knowledge about your kind, however, made up it might be, it should provide a good starting point."

Ruby nodded slowly, her mind digested the answer at her own, leisure pace. "Oh… Ugh, you're still not believing me?" She grimaced at that, pouting and crossing her arms.

"I did say that I will play along, have I not? That means I decided to believe you, although I still did not see enough evidence to make me not question the absurdity of the situation… Both of us found ourselves in. Unless breaking into royal chambers is something dragons do on a daily basis."

While her tone of voice seemed stern, it had a hint of playfulness that Ruby had to catch, since she grinned and rubbed the back of her head. "Not really."

"Very well, I do have many things I'd like to ask." As Weiss reached out and placed the book on her lap, ready to search for specific pages she marked, she could feel a hand land on top of her own. The sudden feeling of skinship still felt alien to her, but like with anything, she masked how she felt, as it was not fitting of a royal woman to do so. Instead, she focused her blue eyes on the girl beside her, the redhead now wearing a soft smile as she looked back into her eyes with her own silver orbs. This caught the Schnee off guard, although she wasn't sure why.

Ruby, on the other hand, decided that Weiss was silent to let her speak, which she did. "Listen, I was thinking since you have so many questions and all that, I could visit from time to time. Maybe not every day, so don't fret if I won't come for a few days… But you know, you don't have to ask all of those in one night." As her words went on, the less confident her words were, her cheeks starting to grab some heat and her silver eyes seemed to sway from side to side, no longer able to focus on the girl before her.

Normally Weiss would scoff at herself for letting her feelings be so obvious and so on display as they were at that moment, this was a rare exception to the rule. Her eyes briefly left the girl and once she gathered her own courage, she offered her answer with a small smile. "I think I would enjoy your visits."

And with that settled, Ruby would drop by regularly each night, with a few rare nights being the exceptions from the rule.

With that plan agreed upon by both parties, Ruby knew she would drop by regularly, if not each night, at least often enough to entertain Weiss with the answer she sought and perhaps one day convincing her she was indeed a dragon.

oooOOOooo

"Do you have a bondmate?" Weiss asked and watched as the other girl jumped in surprise, her eyes wide in shock as she glanced back at her.

"W-What? A bondmate?" The redhead repeated the question as if in disbelief.

"Yes, the book mentioned that dragons form pairs and such pairs are called bonds, making each respectful side of such bond a mate. In conclusion, it's only rational to call such a bondmate. So do you have one?" Weiss frowned, did that mean the book was wrong? Or perhaps she had an argument to oppose the girl's claim to be a dragon.

"Mmh… You're like my dad. I'm telling both of you, I'm too young to have a bondmate! I have like, the whole life before me, why should I settle for… For someone, anyone." The silver eyed girl crossed her arms, puffing her cheeks in annoyance. Although that faded quickly once she noticed the confusion that was painted on Weiss's face. With a sigh she collapsed back onto the bed and into a half laying position, her eyes staring at the high, detailed ceiling above her. "It's called that because once we decide to bond, it's forever. And it's not just like, a word or marriage for humans. We share each other's… Powers. Let's call it that. Strength is a better word. But not the physical one I mean the… The dragon one. Ugh, human language! It's so hard to form a simple sentence."

Weiss frowned, so the girl either knew what was in the book or she… No, that wasn't possible. There had to be another explanation for all of this. Still, she delivered a very similar answer to the one available in the book, even adding a bit more to it. Perhaps her wording was way more simplified and straightforward, but she learned that this was the case with this girl. It often felt refreshing if a bit confusing from time to time.

"It's so we can protect our nests better. Well, that makes me sound like a bird. Our lair, home, whatever. So we can have plenty of little dragon babies and my dad could finally stop making small comments about that. Ugh!" The redhead covered her face as if that could help her annoyance to fade away.

"Isn't that your responsibility?" Weiss asked, which broke Ruby's train of thoughts, which while she was grateful, the question itself seemed a bit confusing to her.

"Eh? My responsibility? You mean finding a bondmate?" The dragon girl tilted her head.

"Well in a way, but I more meant to deliver an offspring. Uhm, baby dragons as you referred to them." The Schnee averted her gaze as she scratched her cheek, feeling a bit silly to use such simple language.

"Hell no, if my dad wants grandchildren so much he can ask Yang, she's older. I mean I do have responsibilities but nobody will force me to take some random person I never knew and bond with them just so I could lay a few eggs." The girl sat up as she crossed her arms in a stubborn manner.

As for the princess? She just smiled, for a second allowing herself to indulge in the fantasy of not being forced by all her royal blood responsibilities. To imagine how nice it would be to choose your partner and to not be simply used to prolong whatever bloodline she would cross with. Fake or not, for those few seconds she wished she could be a dragon if only to roam the world free and without such expectations.

oooOOOooo

"So what do you like to do? I mean there is something right? Like reading books or playing an instrument. Something fancy that people like you do, right?" As Ruby sat on the ground with her back against the bed, she eyed the mostly empty room. It always confused her as to why some humans choose to have so much space available inside their houses… Or rooms in this instance, yet not do anything with it.

"Fencing." Came a simple response and it took Ruby a moment to understand that it was, in fact, an answer to her question.

"Eh? Fencing?" After receiving a nod of confirmation from Weiss, Ruby continued, not really satisfied by a simple confirmation. "Isn't that like some sword thing? Like, you know, fighting?" Her silver orbs once more found its way to stare at the other girl. It sometimes made her wonder why. Maybe because the room was so empty there was nothing else to lay her eyes on.

"It is, yes. Although I assume sword practice in general, it was mostly fencing." Weiss once more provided an answer, her lips forming a small smile as fond memories filled her mind.

Ruby just frowned for a moment, her brain gathering all the information she just received and once that done realization hit her, as she clapped her hand, startling the other girl in the process. "You're like a warrior princess, right?"

After collecting herself from the initial surprise of the clap, Weiss allowed herself to giggle. "No, nothing like that. Not many people knew about it. It was something I did in secret. An old knight taught me. We meet once by accident when… Well, when I was snooping around." The princess blushed as she looked away, although not without smiling.

The redhead grinned at that "And he caught you?" This bit of information made her… Happy? Yes, that was the right word. It meant that Weiss had some adventurous spirit inside her which was good.

The Schnee heiress simply rubbed the back of her head. "Something like that, yes." She admitted, with a bit less confidence than when she usually spoke. Which even Ruby could notice.

Although there was still one thing she didn't quite get. "So what's with the past tense? Do you no longer train with him? Did he go on war or something?" Her head crooked to the side as she eyed the princess.

Weiss's eyes went down a bit, her smile while not completely gone, melted a significant bit. "Well, he… He surely did go somewhere, yes. Luckily not to war but to rest."

Ruby snapped her fingers at that. "Oh, like he retired?"

The princess cleared her throat at that, looking to the side, now a bit amused. "That's one way to put it."

Yet Ruby, being the curious dragon she was, had more questions about this ordeal. "So where is he now? Too far to visit and give you a lesson or two?"

Weiss let out a soft sigh, shaking her head. She hoped that dragons were smarter than this, as she didn't really want to word it all out. While she was no longer sad, it still… Stung to speak of it openly. "He passed away last fall." She explained, too afraid to directly look at Ruby in fear that the other girl might read her like an open book once she could as much as simply have a glance of her eyes.

There was a second, perhaps two, in which the redhead wasn't quite sure what was just said. But once she understood her eyes grew. "O-Oh… Oh! I'm sorry I just… I forgot how… No, nevermind. I'm sorry I'm just slow and dumb." It was her time to feel embarrassed at the ordeal, as she rubbed her neck.

Weiss moved away from Ruby and towards the open balcony. Not to get away from her visitor, but to gaze at the stars. The sky was beautiful tonight, so why not enjoy a bit of that. "It's fine I should have had the courage to just say it as it is. The worst is I wasn't allowed to be at the ceremony or even visit his grave." While it did upset her, she understood that the situation was complicated. Besides, she was a princess, she had a certain set of rules to live by.

Ruby stood up at that. "What? Why?!" It seemed like something important, while she didn't understand all the noble relationships or even human ones, she still would consider it to be some sort of a friend.

The Schnee simply shook her head, as if she was about to explain something very basic. "Considering the place of his rest my father decided it would be too dangerous for me to go and too much of a hassle to make any trips there. Besides officially I had no connection to him. For my father, if I was persistent, it would seem as if I was interested in some random soldier." Maids would have plenty of gossips if even an ounce of this would be known.

While Ruby's rebellious nature was set ablaze, one weird if not silly thing caught her attention the most and distracted her from getting truly angry at this situation… At least for now. "I thought he was a knight."

Weiss hugged herself. "He… Was, yes. But for my father, it's all the same. He's a politician, not a warlord, whoever has a sword is a soldier, be it pointing his weapon towards his enemies or pointing his weapon at him as an enemy." Old were times where a king should be an example for knights in the realm. Times where one would look up to the king, his bravery, mannerism and fighting prowess. Weiss was aware that such thinking was of the old age or simply childish. Modern society was far more complex than that.

Weiss's growing annoyance with the topic and her own thought were abruptly stopped as she heard the other girl's question. "So where's his grave?"

At that, the princess turned around to face her guest. "It's somewhere in the forest, there's a crypt where his family is laid to rest. I'm not sure of the details as I decided to not tempt myself with learning the location. Sometimes what you can't see, can't harm you."

Ruby wore a thoughtful face for a moment as she memorized the very basic and plain description of the place. "A crypt with some knights in it. Gotch'ya." As soon as everything was scribbled down inside her brain, she looked up at Weiss with a grin.

This confused the human girl. "What caused your sudden interest in this subject?"

The redhead simply waved her hand dismissively. "Oh nothing specific, just curiosity. Speaking of which I remembered I had some business to attend to so I'll have to leave a bit earlier than usual." She said as she approached secret passage behind the bookshelf.

"Oh, I see…" Weiss nodded slowly, a bit perplexed at the sudden departure of the other girl. "I apologize if I offended you in some way, Ruby."

The girl in question moved from the dark corridor for a moment at that. "What? No no! If anything I'm sorry for bringing up something sad and then harping on it like that." With one last wave, she moved to disappear inside the hole.

oooOOOooo

Days, at some point Weiss got lost in such simple math of how many days passed since Ruby last visited. The embarrassing part was that she didn't really make a mistake over some big number. No, she just wasn't sure if it was two or three days since the self-proclaimed dragon visited her last time.

Was it because of what she told her last time? About the fencing and the knight that helped her. It was said that knights were those that killed dragons back in the days, it was the final test for a knight, to kill a dragon, only then could he be fully knighted. She wasn't sure if she believed this, at least prior to this situation… Now she hoped that this wasn't the case.

With a sigh, she glanced down at the dragon book she kept. It wasn't really important if Ruby was or wasn't a dragon. She didn't really care about it, it was fun discussing those things with her as if assuming that the girl indeed was a dragon, but outside of that? It was just nice having a…

...A what? Friend? She had people she claimed were her friends, back before she was aware of her status and everything surrounding her. It was quite the shock to once accidentally overheard some adults telling them that they have to remain her friends and how to treat her, what to do. Like it was a stage play and nothing more.

It was when she understood that she was all alone in a crowded castle.

At that moment she got startled as a very familiar sounding groan that followed the sound of someone tumbling across the ground echoed through her chamber. While she was sort of used to it, with her current thoughts and all her worries, it made her jump up in shock, as she stared wide-eyed at the currently laying on the ground girl.

"Hey." This girl, Ruby, offered her simple, unrefined greeting with a sheepish smile, maintaining the position for a bit as if understanding how ridiculous she had to look at the moment. Her demeanor changed as soon as she noticed something different about the princess. "Everything alright?"

"I-I uh… I mean, of course, everything is alright." It took Weiss a moment to regain her composure, as she crossed her arms and turned to look away from the redhead. "I was simply surprised by you since you were away for a few days."

Ruby blinked at that, but soon a grin blossomed on her lips. She understood what was going on. "Does that mean you missed me?" She asked in a sing-songy way, getting up from the floor and moving closer to the noble girl.

"What a preposterous claim, I simply made an observation." Weiss remained stubborn, she would not show weakness. She was strong and she had to remain this way for when she would sit on the throne, whichever throne that would be.

"You missed me!" Ruby repeated and to the princess's shock, hugged her from behind. "Just admit it!"

"I don't remember giving you permission to touch me, let alone hug me." The Schnee heiress glanced over her shoulder, her cold blue eyes trying to find the other girl's silver orbs.

"I don't need permission, I'm a dragon! Rawr!" Ruby said with a grin as her embrace grew tighter.

"If you won't let go I'm calling the guards." There was something dangerous in Weiss's voice.

Still, Ruby decided it was a bluff. "You wouldn't dare."

"Try me." It was at that point, and perhaps for the first time in her life, that Ruby felt a strange cold feeling creep up her spine, and for a human to be the cause of it. In the end, she decided that bluff or not, it was just the girl showing her disdain towards such acts.

She started to slowly move away, but before she could unwrap her arms, she felt a pair of hands rest on top of them, holding Ruby in place. "Perhaps for a little bit. Since you already broke a few laws for which my father would have you beheaded." Weiss explained and was glad that the other girl couldn't see her face, as it heated up.

With more formal permission, Ruby moved even closer to the other girl, now more properly wrapping her arms around her waist as she clung to Weiss. She rested the side of her head against her shoulder, being sure to not apply too much pressure. Some sword waving or not, this was still a princess she had in her arms. "You smell nice." She commented quietly.

Weiss inhaled sharply at Ruby's comment. "I-If you continue saying weird, embarrassing things, I'll withdraw your permission." Weiss couldn't help but to feel her own heart race fast, it was the first time that she felt someone so close. Yes, she hugged before, mostly family members but that, while physically close, was still far from being but an act. This type of closeness? This was as close as she ever had anyone be. Not just physically but… Emotionally?

Without even knowing, she leaned back a bit, resting her body weight against Ruby, the latter girl accepting it without a complaint as she held the girl tightly in her arms. "What were you doing for these past few days?"

"I was looking for your knight and I found him… His grave. So if you want to visit him? Just give me a nudge and we'll go there." Ruby explained, her voice full of pride as she grinned to herself. She expected for Weiss to be happy about both her finding the grave and the idea of visiting her past mentor, for however long he did teach her.

"I see." Sadly no happiness could be audible in Weiss's voice. It was quite the opposite, her voice sounding so flat and… Distant, cold. If anything it made Ruby feel regret.

"You don't want to see him?" The dragon girl asked, she was confused, who wouldn't. Maybe humans, since they understood each other better, right? Or did they? She closed her eyes at that, this wasn't time to wonder about humans.

"I do, but I can't. Soon I won't have time to do much of anything, let alone leave the castle." Weiss explained and Ruby could feel her arms being gently squeezed by her hands.

"Why?" The redhead asked, with every answer understanding even less than before.

"Promise me that you will not ask me this anymore in the future and I'll promise to tell you once the time is right. Please, till that time comes I simply wish to… To just enjoy our time together." Weiss's voice sounded very bittersweet, trapped between the sad inevitable, whatever it might be and the happy part, the late night meetings she had with Ruby.

Both her voice and her words made Ruby worried, but she didn't want to upset the girl. "I promise." She said as she hugged the princess to herself a bit more, nuzzling her cheek against her back. Trying to distract herself from those type of thoughts, she focused on something else. Something basic. And as one of those simple thoughts emerged above all else, she smiled to herself.

Weiss really did smell nice.

**Author's note: **

**Originally this was supposed to be one "story" in which each "chapter" would be a dragon story with a different ship as the focus, but as I started writing and getting more ideas I decided to hatchet this story into 3 parts, as it seemed like a reasonable beginning, middle and end. **

**This is the dragon story I promised some time ago under one of my "How to raise your Faunus" chapters. It started simple but as I had more and more time to think about it I added more and more into this to the point that well… It sort of grew.**

**I actually started with a different dragon story, a D!Weiss and H!Ruby, but then I started thinking that I never really saw too much of a dragon Ruby and as I started thinking about a story with Ruby being a dragon, this little idea got into my head. **

**I guess each "volume" is its own story and its own universe, so in case I somehow manage to write another dragon story it won't really be related to this one. But let's not get ahead of ourselves, I haven't even finished this story.**

**Oh, and all the lore and everything was made up on the spot. So all I can promise is to at least be consistent with what I said in my own story.**


	2. The Princess

**Author's note: **

**A small reminder, since it took me so long to finish this chapter, that each "scene" is one of the many meetings they had. I tried to imply that in the last chapter and in case people that followed it forgot, I decided to leave this reminder.**

"And now to the left, one, two, three. Back, one, two, three. And again to the right, one, two, three." Ruby frowned as she tried to follow the commands that Weiss threw her way. Walking became difficult once you actually had to pay attention to your legs and where to walk, how you walk and how many steps you take.

"W-Why exactly should I learn how to dance?" She asked as she glanced up at the human girl.

Weiss frowned at that. "Tsk, because a proper lady should know how to dance." The Schnee heiress noticed that as soon as she started to talk, Ruby got completely lost in her steps. With a sigh, she released her hands and took a step back. "Let's take a break." She shook her head.

"Sorry, although how am I to be a proper lady when I'm, you know, a dragon." Ruby sat down on the ground as soon as she was released. While she enjoyed the touch, the dancing part exhausted her.

"And I'm a human, yet we're both girls which means that we both can be proper ladies." Weiss tilted her head to the side. "Also I thought that dragon's stamina would be greater than that. We barely got anywhere and you're already this tired."

"B-Barely got anywhere?! We were doing this the entire night! Ugh…" Ruby collapsed onto her back and closed her eyes. Why did she agree to do those things?

"Dancing is an art, and like any art, it takes time to perfect. It's an insult to your partner if you offer anything but a perfect set of skill." Right, that's why Ruby agreed to do this. Because it seemed so important to Weiss. It's hard to say no to even the most ridiculous things when the princess asked her. At this point, it can't get more ridiculous, after all, she's doing something as weird as learning how to dance.

"Maybe I'm just not made for dancing." Ruby said with an exhausted tone of voice. Weiss, her presence, voice and… Everything could only fuel her so far, it wasn't enough to wash away her physical exhaustion.

"Don't be like that. One more time, please? For me." As Ruby opened her eyes she saw the Schnee standing above her, with one of her hands extended towards her laying body and a pleading smile on her lips. Apparently, she was proven wrong and her physical exhaustion could be beaten by the desire to just make this girl happy.

Although Ruby wouldn't just agree without getting anything in return. She groaned and accepted Weiss's hand, the other girl helping her get up. "Fine, but can we do the slow one? I mean, it takes less effort."

Weiss on the other hand just rolled her eyes. "As long as you won't step on my feet, while for you it's less effort, for me, it was plenty painful."

Right, that part. As Ruby remembered their first attempt at the slower dance she couldn't help but blush. "I said I'm sorry. And I promise I'll pay more attention this time."

Weiss inhaled deeply and nodded. "Very well, I trust you. So you better not throw that trust out the window with your clumsiness and actually focus on the dance, understand?"

Ruby saluted. "Yes, ma'am!" To which Weiss had to fake a cough to stop her smile from growing too much, as well as hiding whatever of that smile managed to show on her lips.

"Dolt, let's start. Are you comfortable enough to lead or should I?" Weiss asked as she moved to position herself in front of Ruby.

"I'll manage, I just have to be careful not to step on your feet, right? Easy." Ruby claimed as she reached to take Weiss's hand, her other hand moving onto her waist. She felt The Schnee place her own free hand on top of her shoulder.

"A bit lower, good." Weiss corrected the hand placement and as she nodded they both started to move. There was no music, but as Weiss explained to her earlier, it was all about counting. Something related to music, tact maybe? She wasn't sure. Still, it helped to actually dance without any music, or at least made it bearable to try and learn.

It wasn't a complicated thing and she felt dumb for actually ruining it earlier by walking over Weiss's feet. Some swaying around and moving every set amount of seconds. She didn't have to remember how many steps to take and in which direction, as it was her job to lead wherever they had to move.

"You're doing better, Ruby." Weiss's approval came in a soft voice, a voice she rarely used. Maybe because they were so close or perhaps for some other reason, but Ruby liked this voice. This way of speaking. It lacked this… Cold exterior, if that made sense. It was soft and natural. It made her smile.

"Thank you." She responded and had to blush as she caught herself use a similar, soft voice to respond. As she glanced down at Weiss she saw her looking at her, smiling gently. Just that image, if anyone asked Ruby, made this whole night of torture worth the effort. She couldn't stop herself from smiling back at the human girl.

"See? You can dance when you really want to. Who knows, maybe you'll be a princess yourself one day and all those dancing lessons will pay off." Weiss giggled at her own words.

"I'm a dragon, Weiss, I can't be a princess." Ruby rolled her eyes as she tried to focus on both not ruining this moment and to be able to offer any kind of response.

"Mmm… You called me at one point a princess knight, so what's wrong with a dragon princess hm?" The Schnee heiress asked with a smirk.

"Ugh, no thank you. I already avoid doing a lot of things because of all the responsibilities attached to them. Being a princess would make it impossible to achieve that." It came too late. The realization Ruby had at what exactly did she just say. And for her lack of foresight, she was punished with the sight of Weiss's face melting from any happiness it could have had like a piece of ice thrown into a fireplace.

"Yes, you're most likely right." Weiss responded with an empty voice and the dragon girl could feel the princess's moves becoming slower, less elegant, less motivated. Just that made her feel ten times worse than all those hours she just spent trying to learn to dance.

Still, she wouldn't give up, besides she couldn't make this worse… At least she hoped she couldn't. "Spin!" She called out to Weiss and moved her arms to allow the other girl to do one move she remembered from their previous dance, a short moment in which one of the dancers rotates and gets closer to the leading partner. It was hard to forget since she enjoyed it greatly. The close part that is.

While the Schnee was confused by the weird request her body did react, dancing was engraved into her muscle memory by this point and her body just responded on instinct, as she did a single twirl with elegance and grace reserved only for the most skilled of dancers, soon to find her back resting against the other girl. Ruby moved her arm to hug the girl around her waist to both keep her close and to not allow her to escape. "R-Ruby! What is the meaning of this?!" Weiss demanded as she tried to glance back at the dragon that was currently embracing her.

As she held her close and tight, the redhead murmured one simple sentence. "I'm sorry."

There was silence after that, as both girls just stood in the same position, neither trying to move away. It took Weiss a moment to actually relax and lean against Ruby, which had no objections to that. It was a sign, The princess understood that a mistake was made and it was forgiven. The dragon girl offered her own non-verbal response, as she squeezed a tiny bit more, assuring her that she'll be more careful next time.

It was strange for both of them, but neither questioned it. This body language that they shared and could easily read into it.

Yet while nice, it couldn't last forever, as Weiss cleared her throat and pushed Ruby away. "You dummy! What do you think you're doing?!" She frowned as she turned around to face the redhead.

"W-Well, dancing?" With a sheepish smile, Ruby focused her gaze on the princess before her.

"That move is not even part of the dance we were just doing!" Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes.

"But it got me closer to you, I count that as a success." It was embarrassing for her to say it out loud like that, and she could feel her cheeks grow red. But what's more important was that it had a bigger effect on the human girl, who immediately spun around. Sadly for her, she didn't move quick enough and Ruby could still catch a glimpse of her own blush. It was hard not to, considering how pale the girl was.

"Dolt, we'll have to start all over now… J-Just give me a moment I need to calm down since you annoyed me so much!" With a huff, the girl crossed her arms and remained with her back towards Ruby.

It was to make clear that everything was back to normal, but it was also a harsh reminder that Ruby had to be more careful in the future of what she says. It didn't take much to understand that being a princess wasn't as fun as small peasant girls made it out to be.

oooOOOooo

"They say that most of the magical bloodlines came into existence from having a dragon in their ancestry." Weiss said as her blue eyes were focused on the stars. While they both agreed it would be too dangerous to sit on the balcony itself, they still could sit in front of the open doors that lead onto it.

"Can't say we have some sort of dragon history lessons. We don't even have dragon schools so there's not much I can tell you about that." Ruby shrugged, while she sat directly on the ground, Weiss was adamant to bring at least one of her pillow. To some degree she didn't blame the princess, as her clothes weren't exactly made to have any direct contact with something as cold as the floor, she was just a little bit annoyed that her lap couldn't be used instead of the pillow.

"I figured as much, not even they can be sure, or they're just happy for the fact that the history blurred out any details in case it's fake. Afterall it sounds like something worthy of bragging about, having a dragon in your family. Although after meeting you I'm starting to question that." Weiss said with a smirk.

"H-Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" Ruby pouted in return as her expression turned into something that Weiss could only describe as a kicked puppy.

"Oh? Should I start treating you differently then?" The Schnee heiress asked as she glanced at the other girl, her eyes filled with a playful spark.

"Hmh… A little bit more respect wouldn't hurt, I am a dragon you know." Ruby mumbled in response.

"Oh, weren't you the one telling me you avoided responsibility? And I'm afraid to tell you that being important in any way brings in responsibilities." Princess retorted and before continuing further she moved one of her hands to find that of the dragon girl. "Besides." She began, gently, almost shyly intertwining her fingers with those of the other girl. "I'd have to treat you differently then. Would you want for us to behave differently towards each other?" At that Weiss looked at the sky once more. Not because the stars were that intriguing to her, but simply because she was too worried to look at Ruby's face at the moment. Nervous over how the other girl could react to both her gesture and her words.

Ruby let out a very exaggerated sigh. "I guess you're right, fine you convinced me." Nodding and moving her hand to ensure the other girl that her gesture was not only approved but welcomed, as she more firmly intertwined their fingers together. "With the responsibility part, clearly." Ruby knew that Weiss was clever enough to understand what she meant even without that last bit, but she still wanted to be crystal clear about it. Sure, it wasn't being honest, but both of them knew that it was a lie. After their promise, it was clear that this entire relationship, whatever it is they had, was like an hourglass, a matter of time before it was over. From that point onward it became a weird dance of denies and lies that were so obvious to see through, yet so much easier to say in the shadow of that eerie countdown.

"How do dragons look at it?" Weiss broke the silence with her question.

"Huh?" Ruby blinked, being too deep in her own thoughts to really understand what was being asked of her.

The Schnee just tilted her head, deciding that her question had to be a bit too general in nature. "How do dragons look at…" Weiss paused as she tried to think of some neutral term. "...crossing with other races." She nodded to herself, deciding this was the best word to use.

The redhead just let out a deep sigh at that. "It's not easy to say what dragons think of something. You have to remember that dragons aren't exactly social creatures. We don't have towns or cities and it's very rare for any of us to pair together and form a bond." Ruby paused as she scratched her cheek. "I guess most dragons would look down at another dragon that bonded with an elf or a dwarf or someone like that. Even more so if it was a human."

Weiss remained silent as she digested this new piece of information. The bonding topic was very shortly touched upon in her dragon book, as such this was her only source of information in regards to crossing with other species. Although it didn't surprise her to hear this kind of answer. "Is it because the older races have their own magic?" She finally asked but didn't look at the other girl, for some reason too afraid of what type of face she would see right now.

"I think so, elves have the remnants of their god, even if he went silent. Dwarfs have their runes. Humans? Humans don't really have much." Ruby shrugged. "There's just a lot of them." She smiled sheepishly at that. "I know it's mean to say that but you did ask what an average dragon would possibly think about it so… There you have it." She offered a shrug.

"No offense taken. I understand that older races look down at us, I'd imagine that creatures like dragon despise us even more." Weiss smiled at that. "I saw a few elves and while most." She squinted her eyes as she glanced at Ruby. "Act around monarchy, even human monarchy, with proper mannerism, it was obvious how much easier it came to them." She let a sad sigh. "And I know how despicable some of the so-called royal blood humans can be."

"To be honest I don't think my kind would respect human monarchy any more than any other human." The dragon girl closed her eyes at that as she leaned her head back.

"What about you?" Weiss asked, not sure what sort of answer would she prefer to hear.

Ruby smiled before opening her eyes, glancing at the ceiling and offering a squeeze to the other girl's fingers. "I think race isn't important. Respect, friendship, love, bonding and all the other things I can't think of right now but would fit into the same bag." She turned her head to glance at Weiss only to meet her curious blue eyes. "It should be all judged on a case to case basis."

Weiss giggled at that. "It all sounded so smart till the last part. I think you meant case by case basis."

The redhead just groaned. "I tried."

The Schnee shifted how her hand was placed only to grab the other girl's hand in a more direct way. "It's fine, I agree with your views. I think the world would be a better place if we judged everyone for who they are and not what they are."

"I think older folks, no matter if humans or dragons, would claim that we're just being young and naive." Ruby once more closed her eyes as she squeezed Weiss's hand. "But to offer you a more direct answer, once we bond we tie our fates together. We don't just share the magic, we share our life… Uh, life essence or vitality or however you want to call it." Ruby went silent, suddenly the weight of her own words starting to become more apparent. "This is why dragons would look at it as some form of… Sacrilege?" She asked out loud, not sure if it was the correct term to use, literally or even as a metaphor.

"Sacrilege? Why? Is it against your dragon god?" Weiss blinked, suddenly even more intrigued by the topic at hand.

"No, we're immortal. Well, ageless. But we don't slowly wither away like animals, humans or even elves and dwarfs. We can be killed, but if left alone? We could live centuries even." Thoughts started to emerge to the top of Ruby's mind. Thoughts she desperately wanted to avoid, she wanted to escape them as quickly as possible. "This is why." She continued, trying to talk and distract herself from these thoughts. "If we tie our fate to a creature that's mortal in nature." She looked up at the ceiling, waiting to see if Weiss understood.

"You would grow mortal." The Schnee princess didn't disappoint and finished for her.

Ruby once more opened her eyes and glanced at Weiss, chuckling as she noticed her worried face. "Worried I might one day become attached to some different human?" She grinned as she teased the princess.

"W-What?! Preposterous! I don't care who you get attached to and who you bond with. Stop making strange assumptions." But it was hard to make her lie believable, especially since she pulled Ruby's hand a bit closer and squeezed it as strong as she could.

OooOOOooo

Hey, Weiss?" Ruby eyed the big bad that was the largest thing in the spacious room. It took a bit of effort to understand how big it really was, as the emptiness of the room made it seem smaller than in reality, which took the redhead a bit to understand the fact that Weiss's bed was as big as some poor people entire living quarters.

"What is it, Ruby?" Weiss glanced from above her dragon book.

"Can I try out your bed?" The dragon girl asked as she glanced between the object in question and the owner of said object.

"T-Try it out?!" Weiss's eyes went wide as she heard the… The question? Offer? What exactly was Ruby trying to imply here?!

"Huh?" The redhead was caught off guard by the strange confusion of the other girl. "Well, you know, lay down in it fully? Not just on sit on the edge and stuff."

"Oh!" The princess almost facepalmed, almost since it wasn't very noble-like to facepalm. Maybe, she wasn't sure. It didn't sound like something someone of royal blood should do. "Of course, go ahead. Just! Take off your boots before that." She nodded, adding the last part with a stern look.

"Yes, yes." Ruby rolled her eyes as she crouched to take off her boots, but as soon as she was standing barefoot on the floor she grinned and jumped onto the bed as if she was about to swim. And in a way she did, as she sunk into the incredibly soft bed. "Oooh! It's like it's melting underneath me." She said dreamily as she closed her eyes, enjoying the softness of the bed. Tavern and Inn beds had nothing on this one. But what else to expect from a royal bed.

Weiss let out a soft laugh as she watched the scene. She had to stop herself from grinning as she understood that if only for a night, the bedsheets will have some of Ruby's warmth and smell. Although that did make her frown. It kept happening, more and more this mysterious girl kept occupying her mind. Sometimes it was something small, like her wondering if Ruby would enjoy the meal she was having, sometimes more important thoughts, like how it would be to run away and maybe live somewhere close to her. Finally, there were silly or outright ridiculous thoughts like the two she just had. When Ruby asked about trying out the bed and her thinking how nice it will be to sleep in the same bed that the redhead just rolled around in.

It didn't go unnoticed by a certain pair of silver eyes that something was troubling Weiss. Which was never a good thing. She had to think of something to distract her from whatever it was that troubled her at the moment. "Can I ask you a question? I mean besides this one." She smiled, knowing perfectly well what the typical response to the question about a question was. What was the question? Even she didn't know, but asking questions wasn't that hard, she could think of something. Hopefully.

Weiss blinked as she glanced at the other girl. "Huh?" It took her a moment before she fully realized what she said and at that, she smirked, in a way she was proud of Ruby to try and be one step ahead of her. "How clever, there might be some dragon wisdom in you after all. Maybe just blooming but I'll be sure to inform your dragon superiors that there's still hope." Weiss retorted.

Ruby rolled her eyes but smiled. Of course, there was no escaping the snarky remark. If you avoid the first, easy one, you'll just get hit with the stronger one. But right now she didn't care. In general, she didn't care about Weiss's sarcastic remarks, maybe because she knew her long enough and she understood that being a princess had to be frustrating, as such it's only natural to have to vent in some way. "So can I?"

Weiss opened her mouth but closed it, obviously she wanted to say something yet she changed her mind at the last second. "Of course, you don't have to ask for permission." She finally answered, eyeing the girl curiously.

At least it gave Ruby enough time to find some weird question to ask. "Now I know what you would answer if I haven't said this, so just play along, alright? But if you could, what would you do with your life? If you really could decide and whatever it is you would decide, would happen. Ruby asked and tried to hide some of her enthusiasm, trying to sound a bit more neutral. She wasn't sure what sort of reaction it would get from Weiss and she wanted to be prepared in case it would go downhill.

Weiss paused and remained silent for a long moment. Her face didn't seem to show any anger or sadness. She seemed deep in her own thoughts. At first, Ruby thought that she was just thinking about the answer, but as it went on and on, she grew more and more worried. Finally, she had to make sure everything was alright with the human girl. "Weiss?"

"Huh? Oh, your question. Uh, let's see." Weiss closed her eyes, more to clear her mind than to really think about the question. She already knew the answer. "I would follow my sister and join a knight order." She paused for a moment. It wasn't hard to talk about this, she understood that those gates were locked before her, yet it still made a bitter taste appear in the back of her mouth. "And become a knight."

"A knight, so I wasn't far off when I said you're like a princess knight huh?" Ruby grinned at that.

"I would want to be, yes… Perhaps. Although if I joined an order I would have to renounce any claims or rights to the throne." Weiss smirked and chuckled at that. "And I wouldn't miss it at all."

"But why a knight? Isn't it the same but like… With a sword? Bunch of uptight folks in heavy armors acting weird and all that." Ruby joked, but she was genuinely curious and wanted to push Weiss for an answer.

"It's different, what you described is how it is currently. Or maybe in reality? I'm not sure. The reason why I'm saying it like this is that my idea of a knight is from old stories and legends." The Schnee princess let out a soft sigh. "Being noble and honorable, but most importantly being out there to help people." She approached the bed and sat on the edge, her eyes focused on the floor. "I know that one good political decision can save a lot of people at once, but it just feels so… Empty. I'd rather do it one good deed at a time." She finished, shrugging.

"Hey! I can get behind that idea." Ruby sat up with a broad smile on her lips. "And don't lose hope, I mean hope does die last or something like that, right?" The redhead smiled sheepishly as she wasn't sure if she just butchered a saying or if there was even a saying like that at all.

Weiss just chuckled at that. "Yes, of course. After all, I meet a dragon, so why wouldn't a miracle happen again." She smiled at the other girl.

oooOOOooo

"Ruby I want to brush your hair." Weiss announced as she reached for the small table next to her bed and picked up a brush.

"W-What? Where did that come from?!" Ruby's eyes went wide as she looked horrified at the noble girl.

"It's very obvious that your hair didn't see a brush in a very long time, if at all." The Schnee frowned. "I want to fix that."

The redhead cleared her throat and trying as hard as she could, she attempted her uptight act. "I'll have to kindly deny."

"Overruled." The Schnee announced flatly.

"W-What?" Ruby blinked, not sure what it meant.

"Your objection to my request got overruled, now come here before I'll have to go over to you." The noble girl squinted her eyes and sent an icy glare towards her visitor.

Ruby shivered at that, it was the only thing about the girl she wasn't sure if she was being serious or simply joking. This alone was scary and then to top it off with that glare. "A-And what will I get in return?!"

"What are you talking about? You'll have your hair brushed, what else. Isn't that a reward in itself?" Weiss's brow rose at that as she wasn't sure why Ruby tried so hard to avoid having her hair brushed.

"Well, that's what you want! What will I have in return?" Ruby anchored her confidence into this weird idea of getting something in return for having her hair brushed. Why? She wasn't sure herself, but it was the only thing that helped and she clung to it for her life as it seemed to be the only thing that allowed her at the moment to retain any level of confidence against the stubborn and strange request of the Schnee girl.

"And what would be a good enough price in exchange for a dragon to allow me to touch her hair hm?" Weiss wasn't really annoyed and was far from angry. She was simply curious as to why Ruby was like this right now. And what could she demand?

As for Ruby? Well, she was desperately trying to think of something that would be too much for Weiss and in the end, she could save her hair from being pampered like she was some sort of a princess, no offense to the one currently in front of her, but it just wasn't her style. Especially not her hair. She kept it short whenever in her human form for a reason. Practical reason.

"Well? I'm waiting, Ruby. We don't have the whole night." As Weiss frowned starting to grow impatient, Ruby felt the anxiousness creeping up her spine. She was bad at working under pressure. Thinking under pressure was even worse.

"Lap!" She finally blurted out.

"Lap." Weiss repeated with a blank face.

"Y-Yes, I want you to s-sit on my lap while you b-brush my hair!" Ruby had to push her words for them to go past her lips. It was too late for her to go back. Both when the idea bloomed inside her mind and as it left her mouth. All she could do was to close her eyes and turn red, not sure what kind of reaction to expect from Weiss. To be frank she wasn't sure what the big deal was either. They hugged, although whenever that happened it was never when they faced each other. They danced which some people considered a very intimate thing, right? So why was Weiss sitting on her lap such a big deal? She wasn't sure, but right now it was hard to rationalize things with logic. Right now it was her heart that was in control which meant that the other girl had to think she was plain dumb for reacting this way.

Which was quite the opposite, as Weiss struggled the same amount to understand the situation? It was like her body understood before her brain could, as she looked dumbfounded at the other girl, her cheeks growing red and feeling of heat filled her entire body. Although the girl didn't at first question her own feelings, rather the motivation behind Ruby's request. It was such an odd thing. Was she planning this all along to request such a thing? Or was this really such a big deal that it was worth exposing herself to something so horrible, as Ruby claimed, as having her hair brushed. Still, why was this such a big deal? For the redhead to react this way and for herself to feel so… Strange for lack of a better word.

As both girls were sitting there in silence, both deep in their own thoughts over this strange and slightly awkward situation they got themselves into, Ruby started to second guess her genius idea. The silence was unbearable and she knew she messed up. She had to call it back and to fix everything just allow for the other girl to fix her hair, even if it didn't need fixing, and get it over with. But as she was about to speak her mind, Weiss interrupted her. "Very well." Her voice was quiet and to be frank, Ruby wasn't sure what she just heard or rather what it meant.

"W-What?" The redhead opened her eyes to meet a sight of an equally flustered girl.

"I mean that if this is your one condition, I agree to it." Weiss said louder, her voice filled with more confidence than before.

"R-Really?!" Ruby wasn't sure if she was happy, worried or scared. Maybe a mix of all three and even then she couldn't decide which part was the bigger one in the jumbled mess that her feelings were right now.

"Hmpf of course, did you think that such a simple request would discourage me from my goal? A true mark of nobility is their persistence towards their goals." She Schnee stood up and noticing the other girl wanted to say something, she raised her hand. "Do not answer." She moved closer and cleared her throat. "A-Also I'm… Going to sit down now, so please make room." The deep red that painted her cheeks did not fit the annoyed expression she wore, as her eyes looked everywhere but at the redhead.

The same redhead who had an equal amount of noticeably red tainting her cheeks, although her expression was far from annoyed. Nervous, troubled maybe a bit happy. Maybe, although that could be seen mostly in her silver eyes. She leaned back as if actually making more room for the girl to sit down.

As with any simple thing in life, it became harder the more self-aware of doing it you were. The more expectations there were and the more prying eyes there were. Not to mention that Weiss never really did anything as shocking as to sit on anyone's lap. Not past a certain age at least. That meant there were attempts at this simple task. Like always, she needed a plan of action. Mental preparation in which she made sure she was confident in what she was doing. You can always fail, that's true, but you always should be confident in whatever action you decide to take. Easier said than done, but The Schnee princess did try to live up to that rule. Sideways, she would sit sideways, which would allow her to brush the other girl's hair. She nodded to herself as she made a decision. Now for the practical approach. At first, Weiss tried to minimize the contact between her bottom and Ruby's legs. But that just meant she was crouching in a very awkward position and not really sitting. That made her aware that she had to claim the other girl's lap in its entirety, even if it did sound weird. Not because she wanted, but it was a condition that Ruby proposed and as she agreed upon it, such conditions had to be met. That is her actually sitting on the other girl's lap. Which brought her mind to the definition of sitting, yet she discarded those thoughts. She wasn't in any court right now.

The Second attempt was just that, her sitting on the other girl's lap in a more proper fashion. It felt like she was trying to walk on very thin ice, where any quick, rushed actions would make the ice break, or in this instance, she would hurt the other girl. But once she settled down, nothing broke and Ruby didn't seem to be dissatisfied. At least Weiss assumed as much since the redhead hasn't said anything or made any sound and sure as hell she wouldn't be looking directly at her face. Why? Because of reasons, that's why.

Ruby waited patiently, or she wished she could do that. As Weiss attempt to land her butt on top of her lap, the dragon girl had her mind occupied with hundreds of different thoughts, feelings, and emotions. All co-existing at the same time and all contradictory to each other. She wanted to look at the girl but she didn't want to. She wanted her to sit on her lap but she didn't want to. She wanted to say something but she didn't want to. She wanted to touch the girl but not in any weird way! Just to touch her. Weiss's hands for example.

As both of the girls were struggling internally with their own thoughts and feelings, it was Weiss that broke the silence, after who knows how long. "I-I'll wrap one arm around your neck. So it's more comfortable when I brush your hair." She said quietly, not daring to look up at Ruby's face.

"R-Right! Right, Um… I'll do the same. With your waist. To keep you from sliding or something." Ruby responded. Both girls nodded, which seemed pointless as neither wanted to look at the other one.

Ruby's arms moved first, as she very gently wrapped her arms around the princess, barely touching her as if afraid that she would melt away if she applied too much force. She wasn't sure on what to focus, how to distract herself from this situation. All of her senses were assaulted by the other girl. Weiss filled her entire field of vision, she could hear her quiet breathing, feel her heartbeat, touch her body and even smell her from up close like this. The world slowly faded out of existence for her… No, that wasn't what was happening. The world was being replaced by her, by this human girl.

After Ruby secured her arm around Weiss's waist, the Schnee princess moved her own arm to do the same, but instead of the waist, she carefully wrapped it around her neck. This entire situation was strange. It was far too intimate, It was… It was wrong? Was it wrong? Weiss wasn't sure how to answer her own question. She even wasn't sure how she herself felt about this question. Both yes and no came to mind. Years of etiquette, expectations, responsibilities. Numerous teachers and mentors polishing every detail of her being, of how she acted, behaved and expressed herself. All of it screamed that yes, this was wrong. Yet there was something opposing this strong, stubborn, built along all these years she was alive dam. A flood of… Of something, of what Weiss was not sure. But with the flood came the opposite answer. Denying any implications of this being wrong. It was so strong and came out of nowhere that it scared her. How something so sudden erupted inside of her and shook the foundation of her entire life. Yet here she was, slowly, but steadily, accepting it.

And then it happened. Their eyes meet. Neither was sure why it happened. Was it because one of them sensed the other move? If so who moved first? Did it just felt like they had to? It was hard to understand this whole situation, let alone try and formulate logic behind small details like this. What was important was that the blue met the silver and at that their hearts skipped a beat. It just added to the feeling as if this entire situation was but a picture, frozen in time forever.

"My hair." Ruby finally said, breaking the silence. Her voice being rasp as her throat felt incredibly dry.

"Huh?" Weiss blinked, as she looked in confusion at the other girl like a spell that someone cast was suddenly broken and she was able to go back to being herself again.

"Y-You wanted to brush my hair." Ruby explained and once more moved her eyes to not look at the princess. She didn't want to but had to. It was a difficult task but if she wouldn't interfere with her own desires, this could become dangerous for both of them.

"R-Right, I mean, of course. I was just about to do that." Weiss nodded, closing her eyes for a brief moment, she no longer could tell if she was still blushing or not, as the heated feeling now permanently resided in not only her face but her entire upper body. Once she opened her eyes, she focused her gaze on the other girl's hair. Only when she tried to reach up with her brush, did she notice how much her hand was shaking. It required another moment and a few deep breathes before she calmed herself enough to at least be able to perform such a simple task as moving her hand back and forth, the brush slowly moving through Ruby's red-tipped hair.

This helped both of them regain some of their composure even further. Weiss had something to focus on and Ruby? Well, she had a new feeling to comprehend. Although, luckily for her, not as intense as the one she just experienced. What was this new feeling though? It was the brush that moved through and against her hair. It was an odd feeling and she wasn't sure how exactly did she feel about it. It both felt nice but also a bit… Odd and it was the bad type of odd. Not physically, oh no, that was the part of the good side of this. The bad part? Well, it just felt weird to have your hair brushed. Although it wasn't a mystery that the bigger part of it being pleasant was the fact that it was Weiss who was doing that. In the end, it just felt like she was treated like a kid. Something she often got called and something she tried to fight… At least verbally. She understood the saying about actions speaking louder than words but… Well, you have to start somewhere. And getting into arguments over anyone calling her a child was the logical point to defend that part of her.

"Does every dragon have a treasure hoard?" The Schnee princess asked and the dragon girl was glad for it, as it distracted her from an odd sensation of annoyance that grew inside of her and towards her own thoughts.

"That depends, but most do." Ruby had to stop herself from nodding, too afraid that any head movement would annoy the other girl.

"Does that mean you have one too?" Weiss inquired further, her hand moving back and forth as she by now had Ruby's hair under control. She had it cut short, so there wasn't much to deal with, but the Schnee continued her brushing job as it did seem oddly relaxing for her.

"Duh, I'm a dragon. I have a lair under an old abandoned castle that's in the middle of a murky lake and underneath that castle lays my hoard." The redhead announced proudly. "Gold, gems, magical weapons and armor, bars of metals you haven't even heard of, jewelry, both mundane and magical. Anything you can think of." She added with a grin.

"Sounds expensive, you're not afraid to just have it laying around in some abandoned place when you go out?" Weiss asked, having to fight off a smile as it all sounded more like a childish brag that wasn't true than reality. Still, she played along so far, why not believe in that. Sure, Ruby had a treasure hoard.

"Nah, I have like, kobold tribes that serve me, you know how they are, praising me as their goddess and such. It's silly and I tell them that's not the case, I'm just your everyday average dragon, but they're very stubborn. So I let them be around to protect my treasury." Ruby let out a fake, tired and deep sigh.

"Aren't kobolds… Evil? Don't they attack travelers and caravans?" The Schnee princess frowned at that. She heard of monsters, while rare, the news of those were spread often enough even for her to acknowledge the dangers they possess.

"Well, people attack them so they attack people. Besides, people go and attack dragons just for the fact that they are a dragon so." Ruby shrugged. "Besides, my kobolds only dig and do dwarf stuff for some reason. Apparently, they do like to work a lot. And I feed my kobolds! I bring them stuff. Sometimes." She cleared her throat at that. "But they are self-sufficient."

"I see." It was weirdly specific and detailed to the point that, while the treasure part seemed fake, the kobold part felt oddly truthful.

"Besides." Ruby began with a smile. "Recently I started to understand the importance of my treasure."

"You didn't before?" The princess raised her eyebrow at that, what an odd thing. First, you understand that something is important and then you start to gather it, not the other way around. If what Ruby said was the case, she would start collecting pebbles until she understood how important they were.

"Not really. At first I was curious about it and I thought that having it around would be just fun. But the more I have it the more important it became. It's like a weird form of addiction. I go to sleep thinking about it, I wake up and the first thing on my mind is my treasure. And it's not a bad type of addiction, I don't really want to have more of it. I just want to spend time with it or near it. Embrace it and all that." Ruby blushed and moved her head a bit to look away from Weiss, even if she might mess up with the brushing process.

"Sounds like dragons are born materialists." Weiss let a small sigh at that, maybe it was part of her rebellious attitude, but being surrounded by wealthy people who did everything in their power to gain even more wealth made her dislike this type of attitude. Then again, maybe it was something natural for dragons so perhaps it was only healthy for Ruby to develop such a thing.

The redhead, on the other hand, felt amused by this little discussion, as she chuckled and smiled softly, not really offering any further comment about that specific topic.

oooOOOooo

"Ah ha!" Ruby exclaimed as she, for the first time, landed properly. Or at least didn't tumble across the floor which was getting a bit old even for her. As she stood up from her half kneeling position with her arms up in victory, she expected for some kind of comment, an amused smile… Any kind of reaction. What she was greeted with was Weiss sitting there on the opposite edge of the bad with her back towards her. "Weiss? Is something wrong?" The entire mood, even if she just came by, seemed to paralyze her in place. She wanted to take a step forward, to get closer to Weiss, but she couldn't.

"Remember when I promised you that I would tell you something? Something important, but I would need to wait for the right time to say it?" Weiss began, and the dry and cold tone her voice had made Ruby breathe at an increasing pace, as her heart started to hammer inside her chest.

"I do." Ruby answered or at least she thought she did. It surely was her voice but at the moment it felt like she was just standing on the side, watching both herself and Weiss talk.

The Schnee princess finally stood up and faced the dragon girl. The latter could see that Weiss has been crying. Not really crying, her eyes weren't red or puffy, but she could see moist trails on her cheeks. "This day has come." The princess slowly approached her and she still felt like she was being slowly petrified from her feet up, unable to move.

"What's going on?" She asked, her silver eyes not leaving the other girl even for a second, too afraid to even do as much as blink.

Weiss didn't answer till she got where she wanted to be, in front of Ruby. And while it took her a few steps, it felt like forever for the redhead. "This is our last meeting." The Schnee announced calmly. Maybe Ruby was wrong, maybe she already cried her eyes out. It felt so odd for her to be so calm about this. So calm, yet so… Broken? Or was that just her imagination.

Yet it took all the willpower of the Schnee princess to not break down into tears. She wanted to remain calm, she wanted for their last meeting to be remembered on a different note. Be a different memory. It was hard, especially as she dared to look up into Ruby's silver eyes, now looking more like a shattered mirror than anything. It took away the beauty of them.

"Why?" A simple question, yet one that had to be asked. Ruby could just stand there and hope that Weiss would simply continue, but she was confused right now. Confused and scared. Confused, scared and sad.

"In a week from now, I'll move to my new home. My new kingdom. I'll be marrying a prince as any princess should be. His father is growing old, and as such I will, most likely, soon become a queen. My father decided it would be the best opportunity to tighten the diplomatic relations by arranging this marriage." The human princess explained. "As such, I think that a week will give us enough time to somehow go back to how things were."

"I see." Ruby said, lowering her head. Her mind was empty, she wasn't sure what to think, what to feel. Be angry? On who? Her father? Weiss? Herself? Each emotion had motivation behind it, yet for the first time, she had this odd control over her own emotional state. And each of those states, while having a reason to be there, had some sort of a counter reason to not be there at the same time.

"As such, while I know it's selfish, I want to ask you for two things." Weiss rubbed her shoulder as she looked away from the other girl.

"Two things?" Ruby tilted her head, as her mind was empty of any other thoughts, curiosity decided to fill in all that free space inside her brain.

"Yes, for one I want you to promise me to… To not visit me from now on. Not here, not over there. It's going to be better for both of us." The Schnee princess had to force herself to look at the redhead, as she looked at her with her pale blue eyes.

The first instinct was to say no, to denounce this strange request, but as soon as Ruby saw the other girl's eyes, she knew she couldn't. She squinted her own eyes at that. "I promise to never visit you here or at your new castle from now on." Ruby repeated as she took a deep breath. She never knew that saying one simple sentence would be this exhausting.

Weiss closed her eyes for a moment and nodded, a small smile blooming on her lips. A sad smile. "Thank you."

"What about the second thing?" Ruby inquired, wanting to forget about the promise she made as quickly as possible, even if for a moment.

At that, the Schnee blushed and cleared her throat. "This one is even more selfish. You can, of course, refuse but I wanted to ask you, before we part and go our ways for the last time if before that happens we could..." A loud banging sound coming from the door interrupted her.

Both girls looked at each other, all the mood, previous thoughts, and feelings were momentarily replaced with panic. "W-Wait here, I'll see if I can get whoever it is to go away." Weiss said quietly.

Meanwhile, the banging on her door continued, a muffled voice could be heard. "Princess! This is the royal guard! We were sent by your father!"

This, of course, meant nothing good. Weiss approached the door and gently opened them, enough to see the royal guard in full armor standing on the other side. "Yes? Why did my father decide to wake me up from my sleep by sending loud grunts to intrude on my privacy?" She asked, sounding as angry and annoyed as she could. It actually came pretty naturally to her.

"There's a suspicion that someone has intruded onto your chambers, we were sent to investigate by the king's order!" Not waiting for the response, the man pushed the door further, which made Weiss stumble backward. As soon as she regained her composure she looked with fear towards the room… Only to find it empty. Outside of the two guards that were around, looking under the bed and around the balcony. After all, there were no other places to hide inside her mostly empty room.

Questions would come later, for now, she had to keep up her act. "Well? Are you satisfied?" She hissed at both of them.

"We apologize, princess, we were simply ordered to investigate." The man, now less confident approached the girl who was smaller than both of them by at least a head.

"And for that, I'll look over your intrusion, but if you won't leave at once, I'll be sure being beheaded is the least of your problems!" She almost screamed, which surprised both of the armored men, they glanced at each other and quickly left the room, closing the door after them.

In reality, Weiss wasn't really upset at them, not really. It was just that the dam holding all those feelings was cracking down. She collapsed onto her knees and looked over her room again, thinking that maybe the girl would reappear somewhere somehow. She waited, a minute, five, ten. Nothing happened. A bitter smile appeared on her lips as she sniffled a bit.

Maybe it was all a dream? Not just tonight, but all of those nights. Maybe she went crazy and imagined Ruby. Ruby the dragon, how ridiculous. She took a deep breath. In a week she will be a married woman and in most likely a month? A queen. Even if her heart was bleeding right now, she knew there was nothing she could do. There was only moving forward and accepting her fate.

**Author's Note 2:**

**This chapter was an exhausting adventure. After finishing the first one I immediately started working on this one, only to get sick. My annual cold. While being sick I managed to completely break my bio-clock and mess up my sleep. It took me a bit to get that fixed and I cut my fingers when I was moving stuff around the house. **

**And then after all the physical stuff was out of the way I finally finished writing this... And I redid it like six or seven times. Why? Because The first version I finished I thought it was too thick, too detailed and I grew afraid that people wouldn't enjoy it. So I rewrote it only to make it less which in return made me dissatisfied, so next few attempts were made to find some common ground and finally, I decided that I should at least make something I would be happy with. So I did that, which I hope was still enjoyable to read.**

**But I did have fun writing it I don't mean to sound like this was a chore. But yeah, that's basically why this one took so long for me to upload. Which I apologize for it.**

**Anyway, tune in next time for the conclusion of this story! A sad queen living her everyday life without any happiness and a dragon that will, for eternity, feel lonely, no longer being able to trust any mortals or other creatures, too afraid of once more being left feeling bitter, opening a wound that she hoped would be scarred forever... Nah that can't be it, right? I mean I wouldn't spoil it like that if that was the case. Or would I? And I would add this part to make it confusing. GUESS YOU GOTTA FIND OUT FOR YOURSELF in like eight years it'll take me to finish the next chapter ...**

**But really, the ending part should be shorter, unless I somehow find a way to make it not shorter, which I Doubt. But since it's shorter (at least the plan I have for it makes it seem shorter) it should take me less time to write it. But I'm rambling and I'll stop now.**

**Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed! Look forward to the next, and final, part of the story!**


	3. The Knight

**A/N: Quick note, I'm sorry that it took so long. I left a longer explanation at the bottom, just know that I'm incredibly sorry this took so long to update. **

A week passed since she last saw Ruby. Week since the self-proclaimed dragon girl invaded her chambers. A week that seemed to be the worst one in her entire life. Each day was filled with both fear and anticipation for the redhead to visit her. Fear of the consequences of her actions and anticipation, as there was a desire to see the girl if only one more time. The fact that Ruby hasn't visited made her feel strange. She wasn't entirely sure if she was happy or sad over that fact. Often the best conclusion she had was that instead of one emotion, both were present at the same time. She was happy that Ruby kept her promise but at the same time sad that she hasn't broken it. Such a stupid promise but in the end? In the end, this was for both of them. They had to move on. Both of them.

Whenever those type of thoughts started to cloud her mind, she reminded herself that there were things she had to attend to before her departure. It would be soon. Very soon in fact. Those worries replaced the previous ones as she walked through the empty corridors of the castle. Only a very odd sound would finally help her snap out of the never-ending cycle of negative thoughts. It was curiosity that helped her with that, as she couldn't really clarify what sort of sound was she hearing right now. Luckily for her, as she continued moving forward, the sound became more clear as it became louder. Meaning that the source was getting closer. Soon it became clear what it was. Woman screaming and at first, her thoughts went to some sort of spirit that haunted this place, plenty of stories were passed around, mostly by younger servants, about this ghost and that ghost, a poltergeist and what not. But she wouldn't believe in such nonsense. With a frown she started to walk faster, wanting to witness the source of the sound as soon as possible if only to feed her own curiosity.

"No! Please! We haven't done anything!" The screams formed into words as Weiss's eyes could see first hand what was causing all this commotion.

"Shut it wench! Or we'll gag your stupid mouth!" A man, one of the guardsman pulled the woman's hair as he seemed to lead her towards their destination in such a manner. Behind them was a man leading a smaller girl, who looked shocked, scared and remained silent.

"Come on, don't be so rough, those are her final hours." The other man called out, although it was clear that he was mocking the first one.

"Yeah? Want to change? I'm sure you'd be delighted having to pull this dumb witch all across the city and the castle ground as she's screaming and kicking." The man leading the older woman seemed to have no patience for his companion's playful mood.

"Hey, you pulled the short stick, can't blame nothing but your own bad luck at that." As Weiss listened in, her mind was fighting with itself. She was taught to not react, as those type of issues were too basic to be graced with her attention, let alone demand it. Yet to treat someone, even a criminal like this, was uncalled for.

"What is the meaning of all this ruckus." Weiss revealed her presence, making everyone pause and freeze for a split second, shocked to be in the presence of the king's daughter.

"Princess." Both of the guards offered a clumsy bow, the man that held the older woman threw her to the ground and pressed his thick leather boot against her back so that she would remain on the floor. "Show some respect before those that are better than you."

As the woman was closer, Weiss could see dirt and bruises on her body, together with her clothing being torn in various places. She seemed like a peasant from one of the various villages that could be found around the capital. Maybe a bit less wealthy, considering how wealthy an average peasant could get at least. "I think this woman can show her respect without your help, guardsman." Hiding her own thoughts and emotions wasn't really that big of a problem for her. After all, she had to remain neutral for various reasons in this situation. For one, she didn't want to seem like she wanted to help the woman because of her poor state. Justice was blind and perhaps she did something awful.

"You never know with her kind." The man commented, and as if remembering with who he was talking he straightened himself up" I-I mean, she's a witch, she might have tricks up her sleeve or something."

"Please! I didn't do anything! I'm not a witch! Neither is my daughter!" The woman's voice was hoarse and fatigue could be clearly heard. There's only so much you can scream and plead. Being beaten up doesn't help either.

"I want to hear the full story. What is she accused of?" Weiss took her eyes off of the woman and focused her gaze on one of the guards, making it clear that it was his duty to explain the situation to her.

"There's a village south from the capital, it's on the edge of our border with the elves. I forgot the name, it's so small we don't even tax those poor folks. It would be more costly to send a tax caravan their way and risk it being attacked than anything those poor fools could offer anyway." The man, most likely assuming that Weiss was on his side, started to casually explain the situation. "They had a few rough summers and exactly as all that happened, this woman started to behave suspiciously. Started gathering herbs and wander into the woods at strange hours." He shrugged. "They did the witch test and she passed, so we brought her to be interrogated by the grand inquisitor."

Weiss squinted her eyes. While Grand Inquisitor was a… Reasonable man most of the time, he was a bit paranoid. Besides, most of the smaller things like this didn't even reach him. It was usually his subordinates that handled those things. And it wasn't a big secret that they were quite effective with their methods. "What's the test to see if a woman is a witch?"

"They throw her into the water and if she floats, she's a witch, if she drowns, she wasn't one. This one floated so it's pretty obvious she's a witch." The man explained as if he was asked what color the sky or grass was.

Weiss took a deep breath, trying to not cover her face with one of her hands as she heard this incredible logic, instead, she glanced down at the woman and crossed her arms "I want to hear your version. Speak, woman."

"I'm not a witch! Please believe me! Five summers ago my husband died in a war. We live too far away and I'm too old to marry again, I didn't want to give out my daughter because she was too young so we had to find other means to survive." The woman started to sob as she lowered her head, Weiss was sure she had to be touching the floor with her face at that point. "I started gathering herbs and sell them, that's all I did. It's all we could do."

Weiss glanced between the woman that was crawling next to her feet and the younger girl still standing in shock close to one of the guards. It didn't seem like this woman was a witch or any kind of heretic, whatever the proper inquisition definition of one even was. Still, you can't trust your eyes. "Tell me, would you do anything if I decided to spare your daughter?"

The woman froze for a brief moment and glanced up at her. "I-I would, if I am to hang at least spare my daughter. It's not her fault, she's young. Please." It seemed less desperate and more hopeful, which was an improvement, at least for Weiss.

"Very well, since you're a witch and you seem to control the weather, I want you to cast your magic here. If you do that, I promise on my royal blood that I will release your daughter." Weiss crossed her arms and sent the woman a challenging look.

"Princess! Are you crazy?! She could kill us!" One of the men spoke up but was swiftly silenced as Weiss raised her hand.

"Come on now, a little storm or a tornado." Weiss offered what she hoped seemed to come off as a wicked smile.

"P-Please! I can't! I'm not a witch, I don't know magic. Please, at least spare my daughter, I really can't do magic." Desperation filled her once more as she started to sob again. The Schnee princess didn't feel too good about this little scene, but she had to do this. Medicine tastes bad but it's supposed to help you.

"I see..." She nodded to herself. "This woman is innocent, free her at once." She announced and calmly ordered the man, ready to leave.

"B-But princess!" The man who earlier was dragging the woman stepped closer, confused and angry.

"Silence." Weiss frowned, she was in no mood to continue this scene. "This woman is a mother, and you can easily tell that her daughter's well being is what matters to her the most. If she truly was a witch you would already be struck down by a lightning bolt." She rubbed her template. Of course, this was a risk that the woman was a great actress but… She trusted her nose on this one. "Now release her, if I learn that even though I pardoned her she was still brought to the dungeons, one of you will hang with them. I will flip a coin to decide which one." She squinted her eyes as she sent them a cold glare. Both man, while they could easily overpower her physically, took a step back in fear. "Y-Yes, at once." They bowed and a half helped half dragged the woman and her daughter towards what Weiss could only assume was the castle gate.

With last glance she saw the woman's exhausted but grateful eyes, Weiss only assumed that her silence was due to the exhaustion and perhaps of fear, not wanting for her to change her decision about freeing the woman.

She continued towards her previous destination. She was distracted enough as it is and not with things she really liked to deal with. At least she saved someone innocent… Hopefully.

oooOOOooo

Weiss gently opened the door and glanced inside, afraid that the event from before kept her for too long and the little thing she planned would be ruined. Luckily that wasn't the case. Inside the room was the girl she was looking for. The Schnee smiled at that and made her presence known as she entered the room properly.

"Oh! Princess!" The girl at around the same age as Weiss jumped in surprise as she turned around to face the princess.

"I apologize if I surprised you, while I informed you that I won't need your help, I still knew I would find you here." Weiss chuckled at that, quite amused. She did try to make a scary face and send a cold glare at the girl when she asked her specifically to not help her with packing, yet here she was.

Weiss's handmaid which was with her since she remembered. It was a bit surprising considering how close in age they were. She was never sure if the girl was younger or older, as those questions always seemed to make the other girl uncomfortable, so after a while, she stopped asking. After her original caretaker died due to old age it was just the young girl that was helping her, trying to learn the profession of a maid, while some would think there wasn't much to learn, it wasn't as easy to be a royal servant in the most literal sense of that term. Weiss was old enough to insist and be quite persistent about it, that she didn't need anyone else but this girl.

It was rough, for both of them. As the girl often needed help with her tasks from other servants and while their relationship might have been loose in the youngest years at some point the distance grew, making it quite clear for both of them that they were from two different worlds. While it quickly became formal, it was still someone who was the closest person to Weiss. Which said a lot.

"No, no It's me who should apologize. I was instructed to not come here and do this task yet I went against your wish." The girl bowed deeply.

"You're going to be released from the castle staff duties after I leave, right?" Weiss wasn't sure how to approach this topic. To ask or simply state it as obvious. She heard about it but it was never anything official. And her asking questions? That would make things worse for everyone.

"I… Yes. That's correct. My services won't be needed anymore." The girl admitted as she straightened herself up, although her eyes glanced to the size as her face was clouded with worry.

"My father is a very efficient man. I'm not sure how I feel about it. Luckily or sadly I'm not, so this is for you." As Weiss approached the girl, she reached for her hand and placed a small, but heavy, pouch on top of it.

"P-Princess?" The girl blinked in confusion, her brain quickly catching up with what was happening. "No, I can't. I was already paid." She shook her head.

Weiss rolled her eyes. "See what's inside." She said and while her voice remained soft it still had the practiced authority behind it. Wanting it or not, the young maid was basically forced to follow the command.

"It's gold… A-All of it." The girl slowly poured the coins out of the pouch, as if trying to find one that would not match her previous description.

"Do you think a princess would offer silver or copper as a gift?" Weiss squinted her eyes, for a moment faking annoyance and anger, only to follow that up with a soft smile. "This should be enough till you find a new job. So don't feel forced to do something stupid and… Don't be stupid on your own. Greed corrupts."

The girl looked between the small gold pile in her hands and the royal girl before her, her glances jumped between the two a few times as her brain tried to work something out. Finally, she let out a soft sigh, offering a nod. "I promise I won't be stupid." She carefully packed the gold into the small leather pouch and bowed once more and this time Weiss was almost afraid that the girl would topple forward due to how low she tried to do so. "Thank you."

"Yes, well… Now leave before I change my mind. And stop going against my wishes!" While she once more shifted her attitude, this time the young maid didn't seem to be scared or bothered by it, as she smiled and dropped a curtsy before taking her to leave. She knew Weiss well enough to know that more often than not saying too much would upset her.

As she heard the door close, Weiss collapsed onto the bed, letting out a half sigh and a half groan into the bed, hoping it would muffle it enough so that nobody could hear it. Then again why did she care? She would leave the next morning and never come back here. Maybe once or twice for a visit. In the end, it didn't make a difference, another castle and another man she would pretend to respect. Although this time it would be a bit different, wouldn't it?

As she lifted herself up by her arms and glanced at the bed, her jaw clenched. No longer would she have the privilege to have her own bed just for herself. With that, she rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling.

Such was her role and she understood it. For everything to work out, for everything to be well in the world, she had to play her role.

Such was her fate as the princess.

oooOOOooo

Weiss could finally relax, partially at least. She had to deal with annoying people all morning. First insisting that she packs her things by herself, dealing with that and then insisting she travels alone, at least inside the carriage. Meanwhile, each time having to fake a tantrum over some minor things and ridiculous reasons all so that they would let her have it her way.

Why? The reason was simple. She had to take something that she was a bit ashamed of admitting to. Something that was sort of stealing but not really. It wasn't bad since it was sort of stealing but not really, but still, since it was sort of stealing but not really, that made her feel ashamed of the act regardless if it was stealing or not… Or kind of but not really.

She reached for one of her bags. All of her belongings being cluttered inside. After all, she was a noble and as such trivial things like packing your own things weren't exactly something she knew how to do… Well, do efficiently. Still, it allowed her to reach her goal and that was the most important thing right now. Speaking of which, she reached towards said goal.

A book, but not any book. A book about dragons, something she found in the back of a dusty castle library. Something that was almost hidden, Weiss assumed out of embarrassment, by the castle librarian. Yet it was perhaps the most important object that Weiss ever possessed.

The ride would be long, taking the entire day. They had a stop planned at one point to have dinner, the Inn was informed a month before the trip even took place. Yet too short for them to stay at any place. They would arrive late which would give her an excuse from being social, at least for the evening. Tomorrow? Tomorrow she would get ready for her new role. Of a queen…

...Of a wife.

A sad sigh escaped her lips and as depressing thoughts started to fill her mind, she glanced at the book cover. Just that sight made her smile. That's right, this book was filled with happy memories. Memories she would cherish till the end of her days. Perhaps these were the rare moments where she could truly be happy. Truly be herself. But most importantly? Not feel alone.

Each time this happened she reminded herself that thinking about the girl related to this book was pointless, but with this much time on her hands and with the awful vision of the future, she allowed for a simple question to appear in her mind. What was Ruby doing right now?

Was she truly a dragon? This was never really answered to her. There were many ways she could sneak into her place, be it magical or natural. As there are plenty of creatures that could fly and maybe change shapes. At least this much she knew about magic, even if it seemed like some generic things that peasant gossiped about whenever magic was involved.

But if she truly was a dragon, would that mean she had thousands of years before her? Would Ruby remember her after all that time? That thought, or rather one of the possible answers to that question, made her sad. No, not sad… Well, sadness was also there, but this was different. It was painful. It physically hurt to assume such possibility, of being forgotten by this strange girl.

She hugged the book to herself and leaned against the side of the carriage, her eyes glancing outside through the small window it had. She had to remain strong, she knew that. Yet there were those rare moments where even the awareness of her life situation couldn't be enough to guard her against the sadness that threatened to overcome her.

She hugged the book to herself and leaned to the side, her head resting next to the small window that the carriage had placed near the doors. It wasn't much but it provided you with at least something to look at as the carriage itself slowly moved across the road. Her eyes glanced at the passing trees and other objects that flew by too fast for her brain to process what exactly they were. It didn't help her shake this sad feeling off. She knew that she had to remain strong. But at the same time, there were those rare moments where even the awareness of her life situation couldn't be enough to guard her against these depressing thoughts.

New king or rather new royal family meant that conflict would arise. Human politics were so convoluted compared to the Elven kingdom. They had a queen that all elves answered before. While humans had their emperor that ruled over all mankind, everything was still divided into five kingdoms, with the biggest one in the center being under the direct control of the said emperor. Each kingdom was then divided into smaller and smaller pieces, each controlled by someone who thought that they were the most important person in the whole empire, yet having someone above them. This, of course, created plenty of opportunities for conflicts. Some kingdoms grew, some shrunk, some alliances were woven and some were broken. Soon she would be a part of this.

She wasn't sure what made her sadder. This public and official part of her new life or the more intimate and private life. Being a wife. Even the sun would hide from her, as clouds covered the sky. Maybe even the Celestial Father was sad over her fate?

She frowned, something wasn't right. Clouds, no matter how windy it was, would never travel this fast. She wasn't the only one to realize that, since as soon as that thought entered her mind the entire carriage abruptly stopped. The entire convoy escorting her was in uproar outside. Weiss was, of course, curious but she knew the procedure. She had to stay inside the carriage as it was relatively the safest space she could find in case of an ambush. Although the only reason she did obey that rule was due to not wanting for anyone to get hurt on her behalf, as she would be a priority target of the assault and people would need to be extra careful to keep her safe.

She couldn't see anything through the small windows of the carriage and the only thing she could make out of all the yells and screams outside was panic and fear. It was quite troubling. Were they going to be overcome? Would she become a hostage? If so, would her father or her soon to be husband care enough to pay whatever the kidnappers would demand?

A strong wind gust would shake the surrounding trees and make the soldiers surrounding the carriage in an uproar. Another wind gust and something suddenly shook the carriage. She instinctively jumped back to the center of the small wooden vehicle. She heard the walls crack under some sort of pressure and the entire thing tilting to the side, forcing her to sit down and hold onto the sit to not slide towards the door. This was confusing but most importantly this unusual act made her fear this situation even more, as she couldn't comprehend what exactly was going on. Would they burst in at any moment? Who would they be, who would act this way when assaulting a royal convoy. She felt her heart thump rapidly inside her chest, her wide open eyes glanced between both sides. The wind outside was going crazy, she could feel it sneak in through every small hole and crack of the carriage.

Silence? only now did she understood that there was silence. Not exactly silence, but she couldn't hear any voices. No screams, no talking, no nothing. And yet nothing happened. The initial panic subsided and now she once more was curious over this unique situation. She allowed herself to slowly and carefully slide towards the side of the carriage and peeked through the window. What she saw was not what she expected. What she saw, she would never expect to see in her dear life.

Clouds, while that wasn't as exciting as one would think, it's not just that she saw clouds. It was the perspective that mattered. She saw them from above. Clouds and lower she could see trees and rivers, hills and plains quickly whoosh down underneath her. The beauty of this scenery made her hold her breath for a moment, only to realize what she was seeing. She was above the ground. Way above the ground. She was actually flying.

Once more she backed up away from the window, she didn't know what was going on. Was this magic? Of course, it was magic, why else would her carriage randomly float, let alone fly.

While the girl panicked inside her wooden box, the sound of leaves rustling could be heard outside and soon she could feel the carriage land on the ground. One glance outside through the small window made her confirm that. While her view was limited, it seemed like she ended up in a small meadow among some trees, a forest perhaps.

She waited, assuming that whoever did this to her would reveal itself. Once more she sat in the middle, her eyes jumping between each door. Nothing. There was nobody suddenly entering the carriage, opening the door. Not even anyone politely knocking. With no one to protect her and no one to get harmed by her curiosity, she decided to leave on her own.

She reached towards the handle, noticing how much her hand was shaking she decided to take a deep breath to calm herself. Whatever happened, there was nothing she could do. Right now she had to remain calm, asses her situation and act appropriately. With this newly found resolve, she finally pushed the handle down, the door would open and she carefully moved down the small wooden steps. She had to hop down at from the last one, as usually there would be someone waiting for her with an additional set of stairs for her to walk down, but without one, its all she could do.

Once her feet were on the ground, she could take in the surrounding. Just like she suspected, it was a meadow in the middle of some deep forest. It would be impossible for her to know which forest it was, as she didn't exactly comprehend flight speed and how far you could travel. And then again even if she could asses that, she had no idea how fast she moved and for how long. And in which direction.

She shook her head and turned around. At that moment her eyes went wide as she saw her captor. While she could be off by a bit here or there, due to the situation, she assumed that it stood at around 10 feet height, at least that was where its head was, not being able to see it entirely, she could only guess that its length was perhaps at around 33 feet. Maybe more maybe less. While size alone could be intimidating, there was more. Dark scales covered its entire body, each one shined red and while at first Weiss assumed it was the trick of the light, she noticed that at some points no light landed on some of the parts of her body yet the same shine was present. A giant head with a reptilian muzzle, two black horns resting on top of its head.

She lost her balance and sat on the ground. A dragon, a real dragon was before her. Not just before her, a real dragon captured her, kidnapped her by dragging the entire carriage with itself. It was then that she noticed them. Two slitted silver eyes looking her way. Weiss blinked, not sure what it meant, and after one of those blinks, the dragon disappeared. In its place stood a girl, the same girl that haunted her mind and heart for at least the past week.

"Ruby." She said, whispered, but it had to be loud enough since the girl grinned.

"Yep!" She confirmed.

"You're a dragon." Came next, at this point, Weiss wasn't sure what was shocking anymore. The kidnapping, the dragon, Ruby being here or Ruby being the dragon that kidnapped her which also meant she was here.

"Uh? Well duh? I told you!" The redhead pouted a bit and crossed her arms.

"No, but… You're a real dragon. A really real dragon!" Weiss protested as if she wanted to defy reality with that.

"There's your confirmation. You wanted one, you got one. Can we move on? I mean! It was quite a bit of a hassle to get us here, you know?" As if to show that, Ruby let out a tired sigh.

"You kidnapped me." Weiss offered flatly.

"Yep!" The dragon girl puffed her chest as if it was something to be proud of.

Weiss slowly collected herself from the ground and focused her gaze on the girl. Here she was, all those desires, thoughts, things she wanted to tell her came back to her mind, cluttered her consciousness. She forced her legs to move, afraid at first that this could be but a dream and if she tried to get closer it would all end. But as she moved closer and closer to the girl, she didn't seem to disappear, she just stood there smiling. Once Weiss got close enough she did the only rational thing someone in her position could do. One of her hands reaching towards the girl.

It wasn't pain that forced Ruby to sit down, it was the surprise of getting suddenly bonked on top of her head. She glanced up to see a very angry Schnee face. "You dolt! You dunce! Do you understand what you did?!"

That was not something that Ruby expected, but girls were strange creatures, not everyone could be as simple to figure out as dragons. "I do?" It sounded more like a question, as she wasn't sure of anything right now. Not in the presence of an angry Weiss. Confidence could only bring more thunder onto you, this much she learned.

"You don't, otherwise you wouldn't do it! You kidnapped a princess! One that was going to a wedding. This might have such deep consequences for everyone involved I can't even comprehend the weight of your deed!" Weiss wanted to continue her rant, but she was stopped as she felt a pair of arms wrap around her abdomen and feel a face being squeezed against her tummy.

"I didn't break my promise. I didn't visit you here or… Wherever you were heading." Ruby looked up and meet Weiss's blue eyes. "I warned you about this." She said and it surprised Weiss how sternly Ruby's voice was at that moment.

"W-Warn me about it?" Was this a threat? When did Ruby warn her about anything?

"Dragons are greedy creatures, some might be good-hearted, some might be evil, but all in all? We're greedy creatures." Ruby closed her eyes and hugged her face into the other girl's belly once more. "Once we claim something as our treasure, we'll defend it and once stolen from us, we'll search for it at the end of the world if needed and for as long as the world will exist."

"W-Wait, you mean..." Weiss understood now, and while realizations usually meant to make you feel smart, this one made her feel incredibly stupid. "But we can't." The Schnee lowered her head and closed her eyes. "If you… I'm a human. You'll lose your immortality besides I have my duties…"

"I don't care!" The redhead interrupted the princess as she stood up and took her hands. "I'd rather live a set amount of time by your side than live alone without you for eternity. It sounds like the worst punishment one could ask for." Ruby shook her head. "And is this duty something you really want to do? Don't you want to take your own fate into your own hands?"

Weiss wasn't sure what she wanted anymore. Freedom right now seemed like a very scary concept to her. Suddenly she was filled with the idea of not being caged anymore. But the same cage that kept her inside, kept her safe. Made her life in some way normalized. Made it predictable, peaceful. As those thoughts filled her mind, she realized that while safe, it kept her from the one thing she truly wanted. The only thing she wanted right now was Ruby. Which in the end, made the decision an easy one.

"I do."

oooOOOooo

"Ugh, this is so heavy!" Ruby complained as she dragged the heavy bag.

"You volunteered to carry it for me, so I don't understand why you're complaining now." Weiss crossed her arms and sent the other girl a look.

"Yes, before I knew you put the entire castle into this thing." The redhead continued to complain.

Weiss shrugged, it still was but a fraction of what she owned, technically. "So… Where are we heading?"

"Finding a place for tonight." Ruby answered and Weiss couldn't help but glance up to catch a few glimpses of the dark sky through all the leaves.

"Like an inn or a tavern? Home of some sorts?" She asked and glanced at the dragon.

The other girl chuckled. "More like a cave, I even have one in mind."

"A-A cave?!" It wasn't an answer she expected. Sure, she knew what a cave was, but she never saw one. How would she? A princess in a cave? That's ridiculous… And here she was, apparently heading towards one.

"Well, yeah? I had some rations hidden there, should be enough for today. I assume a princess doesn't eat much huh?" Ruby joked only to suddenly have a face to face meeting with an embodiment of rage.

"Are you saying I'm thin?!" As Weiss got into her face, Ruby lost her balance and had to sit down onto the ground, the heavy bag beside her as the Schnee leaned over her. "Or maybe you're saying I lack certain physical charms? Well? I'm waiting." The white-haired girl squinted her eyes.

"N-No! I just … I just assumed that a princess wouldn't stuff herself with food! Sheesh, Weiss! You're fine as you are!" It still felt odd for Ruby. She could turn on the spot and eat her, incinerate her. Do a lot of things to her, yet here she was, fearing over this girl's anger. What exactly happened and when? She wasn't sure. But that was her life now. Still, she had to fix this situation and while the solution was obvious, it would be hard to execute. As her cheeks grew red and she glanced to the side after a small throat clear she finally allowed herself to execute her clever master plan. "Y-You're pretty like this." While not the suavest way of saying that, it had its effect. At first, Weiss looked as if she hadn't really understood what Ruby just said. Once the realization hit, her eyes grew wide and her pale complexion started turning red. As if aware of that, she quickly turned away from the dragon girl.

"W-We should continue, it's getting dark." The Schnee mumbled and started to walk forward, even if she had no idea where exactly they were heading.

Ruby let out a sigh of relief and shook her head, a smile creeping onto her lips as she once more pulled the heavy bag, hoping to catch up with the princess before she gets too much off track.

oooOOOooo

Even though they were lucky enough not to meander too much, the night still managed to catch up with them. It wasn't long before they found the cave that Ruby had in mind. It was shallow with a giant rock prepared in front of it that would serve to seal up the entrance for the time being. Since they didn't have any kind of things to unpack, they settled down shortly after it was relatively safe.

"Enjoyed your meal?" Ruby asked but it wasn't that she was worried or curious, they still had a bit left if Weiss wanted. It was to fill in the silence that lingered between them ever since they settled inside the cave.

"It was... Filling." Weiss answered with a finesse only a diplomat could muster. She was grateful for the meal but it would be too much of a lie to say that she really enjoyed the meal outside of it just being that, food.

"Sorry, can't really store much fancy food without attracting animals and such. Although even the fancy food I could get wouldn't be up to the standards you're used to." The redhead smiled sheepishly.

"I understand and it's fine, you don't have to treat me like I'm made out of glass." The Schnee let out a soft sigh. She glanced at the other girl, her face illuminated by the dim light that was conjured earlier to fight off the darkness that the sealed cave opposed them with. It wasn't too bright, which was nice, but it also didn't give off any warmth. But she understood that a fireplace in a closed environment would be stupid.

Instead of continuing, Ruby decided it was better to just change the topic altogether. "We should go to sleep very soon, we need to be rested for tomorrow."

Weiss was about to ask what were they even going to do once tomorrow arrives, but Ruby's next action made her stop in shock. "R-Ruby?! What do you think you're doing!" The Schnee stood up as she saw the redhead grabbing her bag and spilling out its content onto the ground.

As she heard the princess raise her voice, the dragon girl just glanced at her in surprise. "I'm making a nest."

"Those are my belongings! My clothes, everything I have left! And you're just … Throwing it onto the ground like that!" Weiss was more shocked than angry, although a bit of that started to leak into her mood.

"Weiss." Ruby called out as she dropped the now empty bag and turned to face the white-haired girl. "Two things, first do you really think we could just travel with a big unhandy bag like that, consisting of nothing but clothes that aren't even suited for traveling?" At that, the Schnee clenched her jaw, not really having any sort of answer to that. "Second." Ruby continued. "Would you rather sleep on something soft, or on the stone floor of this cave?"

It was a rare moment in which Weiss wasn't sure what to say. No snappy comeback, snarky remark. Nothing and it made her feel stupid. "Right, of course. I'm just tired, forgive me, Ruby." Not wanting to continue, she glanced at the pile of clothing. "Will we share it?"

"Huh? No." The redhead shook her head. "If we spread it so that two people could lie on it, it would be too thin." Seeing as Weiss was about to protest she raised both of her hands to stop her. "It's fine, I'm a dragon. We don't really sleep and even then I'm used to laying on hard surfaces."

The Schnee had enough of making a fool out of herself so she just nodded. It still didn't sit right with her but if Ruby insisted, they could argue about it some other night. She got up and approached the so-called nest and glanced down at it thoughtfully. Not the most comfortable way of sleeping but Ruby was right, it surely was better than laying on the stone floor. "How do dragons sleep?"

"Huh? Well, we sleep normally when we do have to sleep. Usually when we have the need to heal or something. You know, when we get hurt or ill, sleep is available to us… If that makes sense. But most of the time we just… Sort of..." Ruby paused and frowned thoughtfully. "Like, daydream? But without having to actively think about it? I'm not sure how to explain something that just happens." The dragon girl rubbed her neck as a troubled smile entered her lips.

"Right, of course. I apologize, it is hard to explain things that come naturally to us." Weiss nodded and laid down and onto the pile of clothing. She spread them enough to fit on it entirely. The lack of cover was already immediate as her arms and hands felt a bit out of place, but she would have to tough it out through the night.

"I'll dim the light a little, but won't dispel it entirely." With that said the light previously made by the dragon girl would slowly start to fade away until it reached a certain size, making the cave and most of its content barely visible.

Weiss didn't respond, she just curled up on the pile of clothing, her own clothing, and closed her eyes. It only now came to her how ridiculous today was. How upside down everything ended up being. By now she should be at her future husband's castle, faking a smile and acting as if she was the happiest girl in the world, trying to earn happy points with her future servants and nobles. Instead, she was sleeping in a cave on a pile of clothing after getting abducted by a dragon. Shouldn't this make her exhausted? Sleepy? All this walking, all those emotions, stress… Everything. Yet here she was, laying restless. The lack of quality of her current resting place could only go so far as to make it hard for her to fall asleep.

"Hey, Weiss?" She heard Ruby call out to her, the voice coming from behind.

"Yes?" She answered, being glad for the distraction.

"Remember our last meeting at the castle?" Ruby's question brought back the memory of that event, with that the feelings she had that night. She winced, as she tried to take those images out of her head.

"I do." She said, hoping that whatever reason Ruby had to ask for that specific moment, she had a reason to do so.

"Well, what was the other thing you wanted to ask me? One was the promise and the other?" Weiss heard Ruby roll around, most likely to face her. As she started to slowly reconstruct that night to catch the moment that the other girl was referring to. Once that happened her eyes went wide and she was glad that Ruby couldn't see her, as a deep crimson red hue covered not only her cheeks but her entire face.

"It's not important anymore." She answered, immediately cursing herself for not simply saying that she forgot.

"But I'm curious. Weiss?" Ruby was persistent which Weiss assumed would happen. She tried to hide her sigh and remained silent, hoping that the other girl would get that it wasn't something she wanted to talk about. Sadly that wasn't the case and Ruby wouldn't even play fair. "You don't trust me?"

"I don't trust myself." She answered honestly. She felt like someone else ever since she met this girl and this new her? She wasn't sure how much she could trust her.

Weiss heard more noises, this time getting closer and just as she predicted she felt a hand gently land on her shoulder. "I trust you." Ruby simply stated.

"I wanted to ask if you… I mean, for us to do something, since it would be, back then at least, our last time seeing each other." Weiss whispered, trying to hide as much of her voice as possible. "But since we're here together and will stay like this forever it's not important."

"Something for the last time?" It didn't help as Ruby's curiosity only grew. "What was that?" With more silence, Ruby moved even closer. "Weiss? Come on, Weiss! I won't be able to sleep now!" The redhead half demanded and half whined as she grabbed the other girl's shoulder and rolled her onto her back.

Below was a nervous, red-faced mess. Weiss's eyes were looking to the side as she made a small audible whimper as she was forced to face the dragon girl. Ruby almost jumped at that. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to! I didn't know this was such a big deal." With a sigh, she rubbed her neck. "I'll stop now, we should go to sleep anyway."

Ruby started to move away only to stop as she felt something tug at her sleeve. Glancing down she noticed it was Weiss's hand. At this point the redhead knew she messed up, so instead of asking she just turned her full attention to the human girl below her, patiently waiting for whatever it is she wanted to say or do.

Weiss closed her eyes, taking a few deep breathes to try and calm herself. She would not mess things up between them just because of her own fear. She was no coward. "A kiss." She finally pushed past her lips.

"Huh?" Ruby blinked at that.

"I wanted a kiss." Weiss let out a sigh as her eyes now glanced at Ruby with its previous dignity reclaimed. At least the eye part, since her face still remained a red mess. "It was hypothetically our last time that we would be able to see each other. I… I wanted to make a memory." She shrugged a tiny bit. "It's why I said it wasn't important anymore. Since you're here now."

"Oooh..." Ruby smiled at that, not knowing what to do with herself she glanced around the cave as she scratched the back of her head.

"Well, now that you know I think we can go to bed… I mean to try and sleep." Feeling the mood growing awkward on its own, Weiss decided to try and give it a soft landing. Once more being sabotaged by the dragon girl.

"You know we could still do it." Ruby offered and as if the realization of what she just proposed hit her only after she said it, she cleared her throat as her cheeks grew red. "I-If you want to."

Weiss just stared at the other girl in disbelief, feeling her heart begin to thump quickly inside her chest. To kiss Ruby, it sounded so enticing yet so… Scary. She wasn't sure what provoked the fear part, but it was there. Still, Weiss managed to trick herself with a bit of rational thought as she took a deep breath, ready to answer. "V-Very well." What was so rational about it? Well, either way, she wouldn't be able to sleep even if she refused. Not with her heart being ready to jump out of her chest. Not to mention the ideas, scenarios, and images that her brain would start producing the moment she would be left alone. That was it. It's not like she wanted to kiss Ruby or something. Well, alright she did but it had nothing to do with her very logical plan.

"Alright." Ruby nodded and looked around the small nest made out of the big pile of clothes. "I'll be honest I… I never really kissed anyone so..."

"And you assume I had an extensive kissing training?" Weiss's brow rose at that and seeing as Ruby was about to answer she stopped her with a hand gesture. "Don't! Even dare to answer. I didn't."

"Right, so..." The dragon girl lowered herself slowly to lay on top of the princess. Weiss moved her arms to wrap them around Ruby, feeling a tiny bit awkward with the idea of just laying there like a log. "We just… I mean, it's about touching our lips, right?"

"Yes, I think so." Weiss nodded glancing to the side once more. Soon she spotted that the dragon girl was slowly descending onto her, Ruby's head growing as it got closer. She closed her eyes and prepared for it. The impact.

It surprised Weiss when it finally happened, their lips touching. Not without issues, as at first, it was their noses that bumped into each other, neither commenting nor reacting to it as they didn't want to ruin the moment. Instead Ruby tilted her head to better adjust. And once it finally happened?

There was no explosion, although a shiver of excitement did pass through her body at first. Still, it was more from the idea that they were actually kissing than the physical act. As for the latter, she was surprised at how soft Ruby's lips felt against hers. Soft and warm. Soon the girl moved away to which the human girl opened her eyes to glance at Ruby. "So… We did it." Ruby said as she sat up, rubbing her neck in embarrassment.

Weiss rolled her eyes, how romantic. "Indeed, we did." But she understood, even she wasn't sure what to say at a moment like this. Considering the brash nature of the dragon girl it was only natural for her to say the first thing that came to her mind. At that she smiled, it was fitting. Perhaps there was something oddly romantic about her choice of words.

As silence filled the cave, a different kind of thoughts started to intrude into the princess's mind. Some that she denied at first, but they remained persistent, slowly breaking her will to refuse. "H-Hey Ruby?"

"Huh? Yes?" The girl glanced down at Weiss with her silver eyes.

"How about… How about a different type of kiss?" Weiss asked and bit her lower lip, she felt like she was about to burst into flames, but she did it. She asked and while she kept it vague, she very well knew that it would kindle curiosity inside Ruby's head.

"A different type of kiss?" Ruby repeated thoughtfully and moved her hand to touch her lips with one of her fingers.

"P-Precisely. It's like… It's like dancing! The general idea is the same but it's a bit different." Weiss paused, trying to find the best word. A simple word that would also be neutral as to not offer too much insight. "Different style."

"Alright." The dragon girl nodded, moving back into her position to lean over Weiss. "What should I do? I mean it's going to be different, right?"

"Y-Yes, of course. Y-You, do trust me, correct?" Weiss wasn't sure how to explain it with words. The instructions on how to do it. Instead, she decided to just… Do it, lead Ruby along and hope she follows and if not? Well, that would provoke and force them to talk about this. It was a great plan since worst case scenario she'll end up in the same spot as if she had to talk about it openly, and if things go right? She can avoid it. She'll have to pat herself on the back later for this, right now? Right now she had to do something. Something she didn't believe she was about to do.

"Of course I do! Weiss, come on, I went out of my way to… You know, get you here and stuff." Ruby made a face as she misinterpreted Weiss's words, only to feel a pair of hands rest along with her dark hair and pull her down.

It started like before, with their lips coming into contact. They stayed like that for a few moments, Weiss trying to muster the courage to do what she wanted to do from the beginning. She felt Ruby move slightly and deciding that she could ruin everything with her own cowardice, she very slightly opened her mouth and extended her tongue to lick against the other girl's lips.

There was a pause as Weiss felt another tiny movement from Ruby. It was given considering that she had to be confused by what was going on. Weiss repeated her action, her tongue once more gently slid along the lips of the other girl, she wanted to give it another moment and if Ruby still wouldn't respond, she'd break the kiss.

Luckily she did. Ruby parted her own lips and extended her own tongue to greet that of the princess. It was very brief at first as if both girls were afraid it would hurt the other. Gentle nudges here and there soon grew into more extended motions. It was a completely new experience for Weiss. Like a thunderbolt going down her spine each time they touched. Soon some form of understanding grew between them which made them close the tiny gap that there still was as their mouths connected.

They were in no hurry and as such, they took their time to explore all possibilities. While the beginning was slow it took nothing less than simply getting used to this new sensation before both of them wanted to make things faster, deeper and more aggressive. They waited for so long and it was all shadowed by uncertainty and frustration. It would show now. Ruby pushed stronger against the other girl, she wanted to offer more and faster to the other girl. Weiss fought back, not because she wanted to top the other girl off, she merely didn't want to disappoint. It was a strange fight between them, not to take from its opponent, but to give as much as possible within what felt like a limited frame of time.

Once that flame burnt through enough of their fuel, they slowed down. They wouldn't stop, not yet. They started to explore and not just in the realm of kissing. Their hands started to explore each other's bodies. It never went too far, this night was not meant to break through certain boundaries. But that need was still there and it had to be muffled in some way.

While this silent agreement was made, it didn't stop them from enjoying what was allowed. For as long as they wanted to.

oooOOOooo

Weiss moved her hand a bit, feeling Ruby's clothes against her fingertips. It felt rough and that was exactly what she needed, something unpleasant to make her understand that this was real or at least closer to reality than she thought it was. Once she felt satisfied… Or should the proper term be dissatisfied enough? Well, whatever it was, once she felt she had enough of it, she once more embraced the other girl.

Now, if anyone would suddenly walk in on them, they would most likely be surprised to see her, Weiss, the princess being on the so-called bottom, with Ruby on top of her. Now, being of royal blood, she was prepared for it. In case a bear powerful enough to move the weird rock that Ruby placed in front of the entrance would appear and be very confused, Weiss had a perfect explanation to him… The bear that is. She was only allowing this because Ruby offered warmth, and as she had no cover that was the only reason she, a princess, would ever allow anyone to be on top of her. Ever. And that stupid hypothetical bear better get it right and not question anything!

"I never knew a princess would know things like that." Ruby's words saved the poor bear from being lashed out at, as Weiss turned her head to the side as if trying to avoid looking at the dragon girl which made little to no sense considering she currently felt her entire body.

"I was… I was curious." She answered honestly.

"Y-You didn't..." Ruby asked, not daring to speak out the whole question out.

"No! O-Of course not!" The Schnee let out a soft sigh. "I saw a maid do it. Once. Twice. A few times. Maybe. And then I read up on it a tiny bit. Literally a pass by glance worth of reading." A perfect showcase of her persuasive skills, surely nobody would question the fine details cleverly hidden among the general truths.

Ruby chuckled but didn't comment on it, instead, she just nuzzled her face into the human girl's neck a bit more. "I'm just glad I could… I mean. You know what I mean. That I could be the first person to do that thing that we did."

Weiss smiled at that, it put her at ease knowing that while it might take a while for them to get used to doing it, it sure will take way longer for them to get used to talking about it. "Was it… Your first time as well?"

The redhead giggled at the question. "Well, dragons don't kiss so yes." the girl moved her head enough to see Weiss's face just in time to interrupt her. "I'm kidding, I told you just before we kissed that it was my first time and I wasn't sure what I was doing, didn't I?" She moved to brush her nose against that of the other girl. "Either kiss or anything like that... Intimate thing like that or however I should call it." Ruby's eyes moved to the side at that.

"I'm glad." Weiss answered as she looked into the other girl's silver eyes. The moment didn't last long before Weiss let out a small sigh, closing her eyes.

"What's wrong?" The redhead blinked in surprise and moved up a bit to take a better glance at the girl below.

"What's going to happen now? I mean, what will we do tomorrow?" Weiss asked, opening her eyes and focusing her gaze on the dragon girl that leaned over her. She felt her throat grow tight as she expected for Ruby to tell her that she's going back to the castle and that this was just a one-night departure gift or something. Just another memory.

But Ruby just smiled brightly at her question. "We'll have somewhere to visit and after that? After that, we'll make you a knight, Weiss."

The noble girl's eyes went wide at that "A knight?!"

oooOOOooo

Weiss smiled as she opened her eyes, slowly standing up while she leaned down to brush some dirt off of her knees. "I'm all done." She glanced at the other girl who was standing at some distance, leaning against a tree.

"Alright, so let's move out." Ruby nodded and pushed herself away from the tree, stretching as she slowly walked up to Weiss.

"Yes, let's. I'm still curious as to what you're planning but at this point, I have to watch and see. Still, thank you for bringing me here." As the ex-princess offered her most genuine of smiles, Ruby couldn't help but blush slightly. Weiss was pretty, but her true beauty shined bright when she felt happy. She noticed it some time ago and since then it did become a major reason to try and make this human girl the happiest person possible.

"You'll see… Actually, mind going ahead without me? I uh… I'll catch up. Don't ask! It's part of the plan and all that! And don't peek! Dragons have very keen senses." Ruby squinted her eyes at the other girl.

Weiss wanted to say something, protest or ask, but in the end, she just shook her head. "As you wish, just don't take too long. We're still in the middle of a forest and I'm not yet a knight. I'd rather not be eaten by a wolf."

"Don't worry about! Only I'm allowed to bite into you." Ruby grinned at her own words.

Weiss blushed, her eyes growing wide as her hand instinctively went over a small bite mark she had on her neck. It took her a moment to regain composure as she punched the other girl in the arm. "Dolt! Hmf..." With a huff, she turned around and started to walk away from the secluded area.

"Oof." The dragon girl rubbed her arm. "Who knew a princess could be such a brute." She commented, but more to herself than anything. She watched for a moment as Weiss walked, only to turn around and glance over the place.

Cementary, it was a small graveyard with a few tombstones and a larger crypt in the middle. She moved towards the one gravestone that Weiss was kneeling at. She glanced at it from her standing position and after a moment of consideration she kneeled down onto one of her knees. "Was this your plan all along?" She asked to no one in particular. The position she was in quickly became less than comfortable and she just plopped down onto her butt, glancing at the tombstone as if she expected an answer. "All this time ago when you spared my life, did you had this in mind?" She once more asked and just like before there was no one to answer her. "You made me promise that ridiculous and oddly specific thing." She squinted her eyes. "And yet it was just that one time. You wanted me to go there one time. What if I did that and never appeared there again huh?" She challenged the cold stone yet once more it did not provide her with any response.

She felt back and glanced at the tree crowns. "You knew, didn't you? You understood her situation and yet you were powerless to do anything. You knew I would understand as well." She chuckled to herself as she slowly stood up. "I hope you're happy with how things turned out. I can't promise anything more than I already did. But I'll do my best to make her into a knight she always wanted to be." With those being her last words she slowly backed off, still glancing at the tombstone. Slowly she turned around and started to walk, quickening her pace as she wanted to catch up to the other girl.

**Author's note: **

**If you're reading this, you'll soon be dead. Probably. I mean this story is cursed. When I re-read the last chapter and went over my notes from it, I couldn't believe that I got sick AGAIN. This time it kept me away from doing anything for a week. I'm better now, but still, I clearly need to take better care of myself.**

**The full story of why this was so late was mostly because I felt pressured. I rewrote the first part of this chapter a few times, each time adding more or removing what I previously added only to add it again in a different form. I finally decided on something and then got sick. Which really annoyed me because I really wanted to finish this as soon as possible.**

**But enough about my complaints, life goes on. What inspired me for this, or rather what truly got me going with this story (outside of the d!Ruby and h!Weiss) was the idea that this story wasn't about those two, not necessary, but rather a story of a knight and his attempts to save the princess. I know I wasn't very subtle about it and everyone figured it out pretty early on, but still, while it's rare I enjoy something I make, and this was one of those rare occasions. **

**I might continue this at one point, but I'll keep it in this form. A short story with a few chapters that continues the general story but is it's own... "arc" as I like to call them. Something happens, concludes, we move on. I like this way of making stories, as it doesn't leave them (stories) in some form of perpetual limbo state.**

**Anyway thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed!**


End file.
